Demon's World
by AngelWing1138
Summary: It's been a year since everything had happened. Since they moved, since he met him, since he died. And now it's the beginning of a new year. And a new enemy arises from the ashes. [NaruSasu SasuNaru]
1. A New Beginning

A/N: I can't write 'The Dark Side of the Moon'. I need to write this thing. XD SO ENJOY THE FIRST CHAPTER OF: Demon's World.

**_Official sequeal to My Demons_**.

Disclaimer: Naruto and co. belong to Masashi Kishimoto.

* * *

_Lighting crashed outside, and Sasuke jerked awake, eyes opened as he stared at the wall opposite of him. Thunder rumbled and he sat up, looking out the window with wide, onyx eyes, before he crawled over the mess of twisted blankets on his bed to look at the foot, looking down on the floor to see a shadow curled up there. _

"_Aniki, come up here if you're going to sleep…" he trailed off as lightening lighted the room and all he saw was a pile of clothes. He sat back on the bed, eyes looking blank at the wall as the rain continued to pour down. Itachi wasn't sleeping there after all. He laughed bitterly; how could he be? That was physically impossible. _

_Especially since he was dead.

* * *

__One Year Later_

They crouched in the alleyway, backs pressed against the brick walls, shadows hiding facial features. They were all bunched together in a little group; the one nearest to the corner of the wall supposedly the leader. Placing a hand to his ear where a hidden earpiece rested nestled tightly. A mike was clipped to his shirt, and he looked at the others briefly, before he started to speak. "This is Chidori; I'm with the Special Ops group. Our contact is just a few feet from us."

He stopped speaking, dark onyx eyes looking at the lone figure contemplating, before a voice responded in the speaker in his ear.

'What does he look like Chidori?' _His _familiar voice spoke softly in his ear and Chidori frowned, looking at the contact again.

The man was tall, with dark amber eyes and red hair, close to the 2nd in command's colour. "Red hair, brown eyes, tall, pale; he's looking around as if waiting for someone."

'…Go up to him quietly, ask his alias. If he responds with our contact's name, than we've got the real guy and not a decoy.'

"Got it." He pulled his hand away, looking at the people with him; the Special Ops. A group of the best members of Bijuu Gang sent on mission-like trips where they dealt with spies from the enemy lines. Ever since the war a year ago, things have been tighter knit in gangs; especially with the death of Sharingan Itachi Uchiha and Manda Orochimaru Goizamu.

"Byakugen, Shadow, Kikai, Butterfly, Mutt," he said, each member looking up at him as their alias was called. "We're to approach the target and see if it's who we're looking for. If not we're to immediately move out and report back to HQ." They all nodded, all of them going to the corner. Chidori nodded, and they all followed him out towards the man standing there, arms crossed.

"There you are!" The man said, frowning. "Where the hell—"

"Your alias," the dark haired boy interrupted. "We need that before we speak any more."

"Right," the man said, frowning grimly, before he sighed, arms dropping to his side. "Red Desert, spy to Akatsuki for the Bijuu Gang; leader's name is unknown." The dark haired boy smirked, and the red head seemed to relax.

"Hey Sasori, good to see you."

"Same to you, brat." Sasori Sabaku said, ruffling up the oddly styled black hair. "So anyway, what took you guys?" A pale boy with dark brown hair and silver eyes answered.

"We…Got lost." Silence fell over the group, before Sasori snorted. "Shut up,"

"Sorry, sorry," Sasori sighed, before he turned serious. "Back to the business at hand; we all have a problem. I can't be the spy for Bijuu anymore."

"Why not?" A large boy with messy brown hair and black eyes asked eyes wide. Sasori smiled apologetically, before he closed his eyes.

"The Akatsuki is planning a revolution. The first one in 10 years. I don't want to be caught up in the middle of it all, so I'm coming over to you guys; unless you can find an idiot who would willingly be your spy, I don't think you're going to be getting anymore inside information about them." The younger boys all swore under their breath, Chidori looking grim. "I'm sorry, guys; this is all going down to the dogs."

"Its fine, Red Desert." He muttered, before he pressed a hand to his ear again, activating the earpiece and mike at his shirt. "We have a situation; Red Desert is going to be coming with us back to HQ. We'll head over there now via the underground. We'll see you in fifteen." He removed his hand, looking at the others.

"Let's get moving."

* * *

"Welcome back," a pink haired girl smiled, looking at the boys as they came into the living room, frowning when the dark haired boy brushed past her, going over directly to the blonde sitting on the couch. She shook her head, turning over to Sasori, looking surprised. "Sasori! Hey, what's the matter?"

"You'll find out in a second." He said, smiling. "You look well, Sakura."

"Thanks; same to you." She smiled, before she walked over to the blonde and raven head, sitting on the arm of a chair, where the dark brown haired boy sat, taking her hand quietly.

"So, Chidori, what did you find out?" The blonde asked, leaning back leisurely in his seat. The dark boy sat beside him, feet curled up to cushion his seat, hands folded in his lap.

"Apparently, Akatsuki is planning a revolution." He said; everyone seemed to freeze in their seats. "Red Desert has more information."

"Sasori?" The blonde turned to him, eyebrow raised.

"After Manda and Sharingan died in the war last year, they felt as if anything that had been blocking them has been pushed out of their path; except, of course, for Kyuubi." The blonde frowned darkly at that. "And Chidori, but they didn't speak much on him. They want to get rid of you guys so that they can be the top gang, and they can own all of the territory."

"Because, if we look deep down into the basics of gangs, it's all about the territory." A dark brown haired boy said, his grey eyes looking lazily at Sasori. The red head nodded, and Shikamaru Nara sighed, eyes closing. "What do you take on this, Neji?"

The dark brown haired boy near Sakura, Neji Hyuuga, looked up at his name, before he frowned in thought. "It's an interesting concept, but much too simplistic to be their only plan. Did you get any other information, Sasori?" Sasori shook his head, and the Hyuuga sighed. "Then we have some loose ends to tie up."

"Kisame Hoshigaki would be a good source; he was Sharingan's closest friend in Akatsuki…" He trailed off as he saw the dark haired boy stiffen, before he frowned, looking away. "He wouldn't mind helping; Kisame's prone to trouble like that. Before I show that I've left them, I can get him to become the contact."

"Is he an idiot enough?" The blonde leader asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah; he's one of our biggest idiots." Sasori said, laughing. Everyone else smiled, even the brooding boy on the couch, before the blonde closed his eyes.

"Alright…That's it for everything?" He opened an eye, seeing everyone nod, before he smirked, pulling the dark boy onto his lap, arms around his waist. "Then we can relax…" He kissed the boy's neck softly, and everyone smiled at the endearing sight as the dark haired boy's eyes closed softly.

"Right Sasuke Uchiha?" Sasuke's smirk was a nice thing to see as he opened his eyes, looking back at Naruto Uzumaki with soft eyes.

"I suppose so, Naruto Uzumaki." Naruto grinned, helping Sasuke get more comfortable in his lap, before a silver haired man's head poked in, a lazy blue eye looking at them quietly; his other eye covered by a blue bandage, the bottom half of his face covered by a mask. Sasuke looked at him with a lazy look that could rival Shikamaru's, raising a hand in a half wave. "Hey Kakashi,"

Kakashi Hatake smiled, his eye crinkling at the corner as he waved, walking in wearing jeans and a long sleeved shirt. Sasuke wore a black turtleneck with no sleeves and a pair of black jeans with a chain on them, Naruto wearing a black long sleeved shirt over under an orange short sleeved button up shirt, and dark blue jeans. The blonde's caretaker then looked at everyone with questioning eyes.

"Who's thirsty?" Everyone's hands rose up and he smiled, looking over at Sasori who sighed and stood up to help the older man, both leaving for the kitchen.

"So how was your summer?" Naruto asked Sasuke, chin resting on his shoulder as everyone fell into their own conversations, Sakura and Neji speaking with the blonde spy Flirt, also known as Ino Yamanaka. Kikai, also known as Shino Aburame was speaking with Mutt, or Kiba Inuzuka and Green Beast, also known as Rock Lee.

"It was…Uneventful." Sasuke mumbled, eyes closed. "I celebrated a few birthdays, visited the family grave…" he trailed off, looking to the side. "Masashi worked me to the bone at the book store."

"Didn't Shino join you there?"

"Yeah; he takes care of putting the books on the shelves while I get signings, authors to come down to promote their books and handle the cash and phone." Naruto nodded, listening to Sasuke say everything almost monotone. There was little emotion in his voice nowadays; he worried it was because the Uchiha lived alone, but whenever he offered his boyfriend the extra room or bed space in their home, Sasuke would always refuse, saying that he wanted to stay in the apartment.

He said he felt Itachi's presence there at times.

Kakashi and Sasori then walked back out, both holding a tray filled with an assortment of pop cans, walking around the groups of teenagers. Each teen grabbed a different drink, all of them opening their pops at different times, making the strange collection of fizzing noise that usually occurred when this happened. Sasuke sighed, closing his eyes as he sipped his 7 Up© quietly, Naruto chugging a Pepsi© in almost three gulps.

"What about your summer?" Sasuke asked, looking over to the blonde. Naruto smiled, shrugging lightly as he looked over to where Kakashi sat talking quietly with Sasori about something.

"Not too exciting." He said, shrugging. "Kakashi and I went out to the deeper slums of the city to go and visit some friends of Kakashi's."

"Kakashi has friends?" Sasuke remarked sarcastically. Naruto laughed, shaking his head at the raven head in his lap.

"Surprising, I know. But it's true." He then sighed, eyes closing. "School's starting tomorrow."

"Yeah, I know." Sasuke said softly, looking at the couch seat, staring at the faded pattern. "Nervous?"

"No; it's my last year. What's there to be nervous about? It's like the easiest year. That's what Temari said."

"She's going to college, right?"

"She's taking a year off before she does anything; she wants to get a job to earn some cash for the rent and shit." Sasuke nodded, finishing his pop and putting his can on the ground next to Naruto's. The blonde's arms then wrapped around Sasuke's waist again, and Sasuke sighed, closing his eyes. "You nervous?"

"No…" Sasuke mumbled softly, sighing quietly. "It'll just be weird without Aniki driving me."

Naruto sighed, looking at the Uchiha as he stared at everyone talking and laughing amongst themselves, almost no cares in the world.

"Yeah…"

* * *

Sasuke opened the door to the apartment quietly, closing it and locking it as soon as he stepped in. He slipped off his shoes, placing the key on the key hook on the wall as he took off his coat. He threw it on the back of a kitchen chair, walking into the kitchen area and opening the fridge, looking to see what there was to eat. He saw that the shelves were almost empty, and sighed; he'd have to buy his lunch at the caf tomorrow. He picked up the phone, and dialled a familiar number, listening to the ring tone dully before someone answered.

'Hello, Pizza Hut©; how may we be of service?'

"I would like a medium cheese pizza with pepperoni and mushroom please."

'Would you like any sides?'

"A bottle of Pepsi© and some spicy chicken wings."

'Alright, that'll come to a total of $15.99. Will that be cash or credit card, sir?'

"Cash," Sasuke muttered, walking to the money jar that Itachi had been filling up last year with bills whenever he got the spare dollar. 'In case of emergency pizza orders!' He had always exclaimed.

'Alright, sir! We'll need your address.'

"115 Konoha St, apartment 27. Name's Uchiha; spelt U-C-H-I-H-A."

'Alright, thank you for ordering at Pizza Hut; have a good night.'

"You too," Sasuke hung up after the man on the other line had, putting the phone in the cradle as he got the amount needed. He placed the money on the kitchen table so he knew where it was when the food was delivered, before he fell onto the couch upside down, grabbing the remote and turning the TV on. He looked at the weather channel, confirming that it was going to be a warm day tomorrow so he could get away with a light coat, before he started channel surfing.

When the blood rushing to his head was finally affecting his eyes, the door downstairs buzzed, and he flipped over. Walking to the door, he buzzed the delivery person in, before stepping back, going to the kitchen table and grabbing the money. He double checked the amount, before he heard the knock on his door. He walked to the door, opening it and looking at the man standing there.

He nodded, taking the food from the man and placing it on the kitchen, before he gave the man his money. He took the change quietly, wishing the man a good night before he closed the door quietly, locking it. He then went to his food, opening it to check his order, and nodded.

"Itadakimasu," he said quietly, before placing a slice of pizza on his plate, going over to the cupboard and grabbing a glass to pour the Pepsi© in.

The channel the TV was on broke to a scene with rain, and Sasuke glared at the TV, grabbing the remote. "Stupid pathetic fallacy." He muttered.

He turned the TV off.

* * *

The next day started off with the alarm clock ringing in his ears. He groaned, shoving his head under the pillow as he ignored the annoying drone of the clock. He was about to fall back asleep when the door suddenly crashed open, the alarm clock slammed to sleep, and his blankets thrown off roughly. The blonde whined, reaching out blindly for his blanket, and a tired, pissed off looking Kakashi stood over him, red and blue eye glaring at him.

"Naruto get the hell out of bed." He said, slapping the blonde's head. Naruto cringed at the contact, opening tired blue eyes to glare at his caretaker, and Kakashi glared back. A heated battle of wits broke out, before Naruto lost, crawling out of his bed and falling onto the floor gracelessly.

"I hate you." The teen muttered to the adult, dragging himself up onto his feet and dragging said feet out of his over crowded, over messy room to the hall, removing his shirt as he did so. He kicked the door closed to the bathroom as he entered, slamming it on Kakashi's surprised face. He threw his discarded clothes in the basket, walking naked to his shower. Turning the water on, he scratched his head for a second, making a face at the grease he felt in his hair.

"Ew." After waiting for the water to warm up, he stepped into the shower, closing the door as he let the water fall onto him in the heavy setting; water pounding on his head and back. He grabbed shampoo, rubbing his scalp with it quietly, eyes closed.

Today was the first day of school. There would be the usual assembly at the beginning during first and second because that's when Tsunade actually woke up enough to have it. Then they would have their third period class, and their schedule would go back to normal.

Though, Naruto sensed that this year would be very different than the year before.

Memories of Sasuke coming to the school, of him standing up to Naruto during the first day assembly and of actually fighting him at lunch flashed through his head; seeing how the boy changed from indifferent to a broken child in the course of only a week and a half; watching as he grew up from these memories and turned them from pain to power. He then winced as the memory of watching Sasuke cry over his brother's dead body filled his mind; how the broken, lost child within him had broken out, clutching to the bloodied body, not caring that the blood was sinking into his own clothes. When they had tried to get Sasuke away from Itachi, Sasuke had practically attacked them; eyes a dangerous red and teeth clenched, bared in the same way an animal would bare them when they were going to attack.

Only Naruto could rip the boy away from Itachi's corpse, holding him to him as Sasuke sobbed, clutching to Naruto just as desperately. That was the day that Sasuke had changed forever.

He had seemed normal enough during the remainder of the school year, but Naruto watched the changes as they began to take place. Sasuke had become more introverted, and began to care less and less about what he did in school. He would skip classes if he didn't feel like going to them, hanging out on the roof and just staring out at the back of the school where the picnic tables were. Even in the rain, he'd sit out there; eyes closed and face turned towards the sky as if he were cleansing himself of some sort of sin. Naruto had never bothered him, not wanting him to fake a smile or force out conversation; if Sasuke wanted to be alone, he could be. Naruto would watch in the distance.

Finally, when Itachi's birthday came around, the final change in Sasuke had taken place. He had turned cold; his eyes blank and almost dead like they had been when he remembered. Once in a while, Sasuke would go to him and tell him memories that he was gaining back; the process still not finished as he remembered the events in the rehab he had spent some time in. But he wouldn't talk too much, or too loudly. It was like he had finally realized his Aniki wasn't just gone away; it was like it fully sank into his mind that Itachi Uchiha was dead.

He rinsed the conditioner he had put into his hair out, turning the shower off. He stood there for a moment, before pushing the door opened, grabbing the towel on the towel rack and drying his hair and neck quietly, wrapping it around his waist. He walked to the sink to brush his teeth, licking them briefly, before using mouthwash and rinsing. He ran his fingers through his hairs, arm dropping to his side; droplets of water dripped off of well toned biceps and a tanned chest, the well built chest something of envy to those who had seen his figure.

He walked out of the bathroom in his towel, waving to Kakashi who was waiting outside. Kakashi nodded, walking in and closing the door, and Naruto heard the shower turn on again right before he closed his door.

The blonde sighed, leaning back against the door as he stared at his room, frowning a little. He planned on making this year different for Sasuke.

He would help Sasuke live again.

* * *

The school was noisy as it always was in the mornings, with friends finding friends and new first years walking around, trying to find a friend group to stick to. Naruto grinned at people that recognized him, waving lazily as he walked down the front walkway to the back; the Bijuu Gang was at the rooftop as it always was. First years stared at Naruto in awe, before second and third years dragged them away, hissing to them that they shouldn't stare at him; explaining who he was. He inwardly frowned; he didn't like the fact that people feared him because of who he was. Or at least, who he was famous for.

He sighed, climbing up the metal fire escape before he got onto the roof, seeing the members of the gang sitting in their usual spots; Tayuya, Sakon and Ukon sitting by themselves next to Ino, Sakura and Neji, who were all talking about something, Neji looking a little happier than he had been the past few weeks. Kankuro sat beside Shino and Kiba, talking to them; now that Temari was gone, Kankuro had to find a new spot and new people to hang around with. Tenten Itsumi and Rock Lee were talking to each other near Gaara, who sat in his usual spot. Sasuke sat on the ground in his usual spot as well; sketchpad in his lap and backpack resting beside him.

The blonde grinned, waving as they all looked up; he got a few waves of return, some of them calling out 'Hey!' and 'What's up, Kyuubi?' before he walked to his normal spot. He sat down; looking at the sketchpad in Sasuke's lap and the Uchiha looked up at him with curious eyes. "What?"

"Nothing, just wonderin' what you were drawing." He said, looking at it. He saw the rough outlines of a strong jawed face, and frowned; he couldn't tell who it was by the outline? But he usually could! Sasuke smiled a little, and Naruto raised an eyebrow at him curiously. "Who are you drawing?"

"No one," Sasuke said, closing the sketchpad. "You can't know yet." He then slipped the pad back into his book bag, leaning against the cement siding as he looked at the blonde. "Is Kakashi here yet?"

"He'll be here in half hour," Naruto said, shrugging with one shoulder. "You got him for English again?"

"Yeah, first period yet again," Sasuke said, rolling his eyes. "I got Asuma for Math second, Anko for gym third and Yugao Uzuki is my art teacher. Hayate Gekko is teaching me Health." Sasuke sighed, closing his eyes. "I made sure I would not have Drama this year; I'd have killed myself than do Drama again."

"Don't kill yourself; that's a little permanent." Naruto said, smiling at him. "I'd bore you with my subjects, but the bell's actually gonna ring pretty soon; I got here kind of late."

"Why is that?" Sasuke asked, looking at the blonde with an inquisitive eyebrow rose. Naruto shrugged lightly, looking over to the side as he answered.

"I got caught up in something at home." He said. The bell then decided to ring, and everyone got up, Naruto stretching his arms over his head. "To the first day of boredom!"

"Huzzah!"

"…Is that really how you greet everyone?" Sasuke asked, looking at Naruto oddly. Naruto smirked, nodding as Shikamaru lazily waved, walking to the fire escape with everyone else.

"Yeah."

"…Wow. I'm dating a dork." Sasuke said, and then started to the escape. Naruto blinked, before he gasped.

"That hurt!"

* * *

Naruto sighed, leaning back in his seat as he looked out at the window, the teacher doing the usual first day greetings and giving out the first day sheets on the course outline. He didn't understand why they did this; it wasn't like anything was new. The teacher, Genma Shiranui, with his senbon needle in between his teeth as it always was, was reminding students of the rumour he had started the year before.

The brown haired man looked at the blonde as he daydreamed beside the window, sighing quietly; the kid sure as hell liked windows, because he sat next to one in every class that he had. It probably had something to do with his past or whatever. He then looked over at the door as Shizune, the vice principal, stepped inside, smiling at him kindly. "Could we kindly kidnap your class? Tsunade wants her assembly now."

"She's had her fill of sake then." Genma said, grinning at the vice. Shizune blushed a little, nodding as Genma nodded. "Sure, I'll send the brats down." The black haired woman nodded, bowing a little to him before she left quietly. Genma looked at the class, grinning. "Okay, get your asses down to the auditorium." He said, making a shooing motion with his hand. Naruto and the other students all got up soundlessly, making their way down to the auditorium. Naruto mixed in with the other students, looking at nothing as he walked down the halls quietly; his mind elsewhere.

They entered the auditorium quietly, taking their seats right at the back, where the fourth years sat every year. The third years sat in front of them, and Naruto saw Sasuke sitting with Neji, Shikamaru and Chouji Akimichi like he had last year when he had first seen the Uchiha. Second and first years made their way into the auditorium slowly, taking their seats.

Finally, after a few minutes of everyone murmuring to themselves, the doors in the back slammed open, and Tsunade Takahashi made her way up to the front in a shirt that showed off her ample chest and a pair of formal black pants; boots clicking on the auditorium floor as she made her way down the stairs to the lower platform in the front. She got up, smiling at the teachers that sat around, before she went to the microphone that Shizune had set up before she had gotten there. Standing in front of it, hands on her hips, she looked at the school with a critical eye before grinning.

"Hello, everyone! My name is Tsunade Takahashi, though I'd rather you call me Tsunade, and I am your principal. Welcome back to another year of Konoha High! And if you are new, welcome to Konoha High and I hope you have a pleasant year. Could all those who are new, please stand up?"

Everyone watched as the new kids stood up, some people standing in a lazy stance, others standing nervously. Tsunade scanned the room for anyone new other than first years before she nodded to them, smiling. "Thank you! Now, to continue on with our assembly. In Konoha High we have a few simple rules. Rule one: no killing each other. Rule two: no one unauthorized may go up to the roof. If you have specific permission granted to you from me personally, than you may stick around up there. Rule three: no smoking inside, or doing any drugs inside, or drinking inside. Rule four: no beating each other up to a bloody pulp. And finally, rule five: no one die, alright? I don't want to sign any troublesome paperwork."

She then nodded, smirking again. "Now I'll be handing the mic over to Shizune, your vice principal. Respect her like you'd respect me and everyone will get along fine! Shizune?" Tsunade slid out of the petite woman's way, and Shizune smiled at everyone easily.

"Hello everyone, and welcome to our high school. We hope that nothing will occur that you'll need to come to us about in complaint. Now, we have a few new things that happened over the summer." She looked at everyone before she nodded to someone in the crowd. "First, I'd like you all to welcome our new home economics teacher Sasori Sabaku. Iruka Umino, our usual home economics teacher, is ill and is in the hospital. So everyone give Mr. Sabaku a warm welcome." Everyone clapped as Sasori stood up, bowing to them politely, before he walked up to say something briefly.

"If you could all just call me Sasori that would be nice. Being called Mr. Sabaku makes me feel old." He said, smiling, before he went back to his seat. Shizune then stepped back up to the mic, looking at everyone.

"And one more thing before we let you go to third period," she said, pushing back her black hair.

"Please welcome our new medic; Kabuto Yakushi."


	2. Distant Memories

A/N: Hey look chapter two! _(avoids rotten fruit) _...Writer's block's a bitch? _(avoids more rotten fruit) _STOP WITH THE TOMATOES ALREADY!

Anyhow, here's chapter two. OMG IS THAT A BIT OF NARUTO'S PAST HOLY SHIT. That's right. HAVE FUN! Go ahead and start guessing. XP

Disclaimer: Naruto and Co. belong to Masashi Kishimoto.

* * *

"WHAT THE HELL, TSUNADE-BAACHAN?" Naruto screamed into the face of the principal after the assembly. Naruto had skipped his third class all together to rant and rave and scream at the blonde that sat calmly in front of him; her eyes closed, hands folded in front of her as she sat in her chair behind her desk. Finally, she opened her eyes, giving him a quick glare, and the leader of Bijuu quieted, still steaming.

"What the hell what, Naruto?" She asked instead of yelling back at him; it was still morning and she didn't want to go through a screaming match with Naruto first day. She could leave that for tomorrow. "Shouldn't you be in class?"

"Kabuto Yakushi, that's what!" Naruto stated angrily, completely ignoring her second question. "Why the hell is that _bastard_ in our school?"

"He needed a job," Tsunade stated, shrugging, picking up some stray papers and patting them neatly in front of her, placing them on the desk. "Does it bother you?"

"Just a smidgen." Naruto said sarcastically, a snide look on his usually handsome face. "You do know he used to be the adopted son or Orochimaru, right? Ya know, the bastard that _raped_ Sasuke and then decided he'd try to KILL him _LAST YEAR_?" Tsunade sighed, pressing her index and middle fingers in between her eyes; a show of a headache approaching. "Why would you _hire_ a guy like that? Ya know the teme hasn't gotten over everything yet!"

"I know that and I'm sorry about that." Tsunade finally shouted, slamming her hands on her desk and scattering papers as she stood up, glaring Naruto squarely in the eye. "We needed a medic and he was one of the ones who came for the job."

"Couldn't you have picked someone else?"

"His father was a famous medic in the hospital I work part time at Naruto! He's the most qualified!" Naruto tugged at his hair, turning around before he glared at her again, a gloved hand pointing at her angrily. She raised an eyebrow, waiting to see what he would say.

Finally, Naruto sighed tiredly, dropping his hand and looking at the floor of the office room. "Sasuke's not going to be able to heal here." He whispered quietly, looking up at Tsunade. "He won't be able to get back to normal now that a reminder of his past will be at the same school as him, taking care of him whenever he gets hurt; he'll remember quicker the things Itachi forced him to forget, and he won't be able to handle it." He sighed, looking to the door quietly.

"It's like when he met up with Orochimaru before the war started; he remembered everything that happened the night he was raped; he ran to my house, you know, crying and looking like he had seen a ghost or someone die before him. He told me later on that he had heard, seen and almost felt everything of that memory; he could hear the sounds of his own terrified screaming."

Tsunade frowned as she listened to Naruto speak quietly of what Sasuke's mental capacity was like. "Is Uchiha sane, Naruto?" She whispered suddenly, making Naruto glance at her. Naruto then looked at the floor, sighing quietly.

"Not completely."

* * *

Sasuke sat on the bleachers of the gym class, listening to Anko as she spoke of the first day and what they would usually do. All the students in her unisex gym class already knew what she was going to do for that year; including the annual run around the school for first day. He sighed as she called them all to get into pairs, walking over to Tenten, who was in his gym class this year. She smiled at him brightly, and he nodded, a little awkward around the girl.

Over the summer, Sasuke had gotten to know the gang better, becoming closer to the girls than the guys. The girls would help him more than the guys, and he would be the labour that they would need at times. He and Tenten got along fine, but Sasuke had always been a little distant from her, because he had killed her mother.

Tenten snapped her fingers in front of his face, looking at him curiously; hair in two buns on either side of her head as it always was. Sasuke looked down at her, raising an eyebrow and the brunette smirked at him jokingly. "You're brooding so I decided to bother you." She explained, shrugging. Anko stood in front of them, looking as though she had to say something she didn't want to say; like telling a kid 'eat your vegetables' while she herself felt the kid's pain.

"Before we can do the run, though, the new medic demands we have a physical; something we haven't had in years folks. So we're using that old abandoned physical room in the back, and we'll line up quietly in a boy-girl fashion and make the man happy." She nodded to the kids, walking over to Sasuke and standing behind him. "I'll go after you, brat," she muttered into his ear. "Two people go in at a time, and I think I should go in with you so that you don't kill the guy."

"He deserves it, doesn't he?" Sasuke hissed as the students walked towards the door, which opened to reveal a kindly smiling Kabuto. His eyes narrowed, mouth twisting into a sneer. "Why the hell is he here?"

"We needed a medic since Tsunade started taking care of Hinata Hyuuga," Anko answered quietly in return. "She's doing better, by the way."

"No wonder Neji seemed happier," Sasuke mumbled, the two pieces of information clicking in his head. He then sighed softly, stepping forward with everyone else; Anko's hand still on his shoulder as if restraining him. He frowned a little; he guessed she didn't think he'd be able to control himself.

How close she was to the truth….

Pairs of students after pairs of students went in at a time, the door closing for ten minutes before they were let out again. Finally, after a few minutes of this, Anko and Sasuke stepped in, the teacher closing the door firmly behind her. Kabuto looked up to see them, and paled, stepping back a little; looking nervous.

"Anko-san, Sasuke-san," he greeted pleasantly; his voice cracked, showing the nerves he tried to desperately hide. "Good to see you two. Would one of you please come up?"

Sasuke was about to step up when Anko briskly walked to the grey haired young man, standing in front of him with a challenging glare; her nose practically pushed against his own.

"What do I gotta do, _doc_?" Anko asked, stressing out the last word sarcastically. Kabuto calmly pushed up his glasses from the tip of his nose, smiling a little uneasily.

"Just remove your coat and shirt and step onto the scale, please." He said, and then looked at Sasuke. "If you feel uncomfortable with the procedure, just close your eyes."

"I don't think I can be uncomfortable with anything anymore." Sasuke muttered dangerously. Kabuto paled a little more, before he nodded, turning as Anko did as she was told. Kabuto went through a process of measuring her chest; recording her weight and height, before measuring her waist size and her blood pressure before letting her put her shirt and jacket back on. He motioned for Sasuke to step up, and the Uchiha reluctantly did so, pulling his shirt off as he did so. Kabuto frowned as he saw the slight markings of the tattoo the young male had gotten when he was ten, before he asked Sasuke to step onto the scale.

The Uchiha felt disgusted as Kabuto measured his chest and waist, recording his height and weight down on his clipboard. He took his blood pressure as well, giving Sasuke permission to go; that's when Sasuke felt like he was out of hell. He pulled his dark shirt back on over his head, straightening the fabric before walking to the door where Anko waited. The Uchiha glanced back at Kabuto then, eyes narrowed.

"You're as much to blame as he is," he whispered, before opening the door and walking out quickly. Anko frowned, following after the younger boy and closing the door behind her, leaving Kabuto behind.

The medic bit his bottom lip, sighing tiredly. "I know, Sasuke."

* * *

Lunch was a blessing in disguise, and every teenager in the school knew this. Those who considered it a personal gift from god, however, were currently sitting on the roof, all talking loudly and animatedly about the fact that their new medic at the school was one Kabuto Yakushi. What could Tsunade be thinking? Why would she do this after all the shit they went through the year before where Kabuto was involved? Wouldn't the blonde woman let Sasuke heal already? He deserved it, right?

Sasuke sat beside Naruto like he always did calmly, eating the lunch he had bought before coming out to the roof and sketching in his sketchpad at the same time; letting the conversations around him just wash over his head, going in through one ear and out the other. He didn't care for the topic of conversation; which was currently he. It made him uncomfortable how much they were all talking about him as if he weren't even there.

"It's not fair to Sasuke," Ino was saying, looking at Sakura and Neji, who nodded in agreement. "He should have the chance to finally get over everything that happened! Why bring in someone who's going to remind him of everything that happened?"

"Naruto said that Tsunade said they needed a medic and he was the best qualified. Tsunade's the best medic in the city!" Sakura said, rolling her green eyes sarcastically. "Why would we need a medic in the first place?"

"Tsunade does get tired after a while," Neji defended quietly. "She isn't Superwoman."

"With how she punches, you'd think differently," Sakura muttered, closing her eyes at the memory. "She's stronger than ME."

"And that's shocking in itself!" Ino joked, moving out of the way of Sakura's pinching fingers. "Only saying the truth, girl!"

"Truth hurts!"

"Naruto, why won't you tell us the rest of the conversation?" Shikamaru asked, looking at him from the other side of Gaara; the red head looking equally interested in his own way. Naruto just shook his head, looking over at Sasuke as he continued to sketch, frowning.

"Shut up about it already," he muttered, sliding off of the edge onto the ground, sitting next to his boyfriend. He leaned his head on Sasuke's shoulder, and Sasuke closed his sketchpad, hands resting on the cover as he leaned his head on top of Naruto's, eyes closed. "What's up?"

"The sky," Naruto laughed, and Sasuke smiled a little; glad to hear that familiar sound. He felt the blonde shift, and opened his eyes as he was pulled into Naruto's lap, arms wrapped around his waste protectively.

"I know that," he whispered, placing his chin on Sasuke's shoulder. Sasuke looked forward as other members interacted, ignoring the two; Sakura and Neji holding hands as they spoke, heads leaning close together while Ino spoke casually to Chouji, who sat next to her. "I mean what's up with you?"

"Nothing," Sasuke mumbled, closing his eyes from the scene around him; replaying it in his mind's eye. He then leaned back against Naruto, finally relaxing in his position, and he felt the arms around him loosen; letting him breathe. "I'm just thinking to myself lately."

"If hat's going to make you act colder than usual, then you shouldn't think so much. Especially not around me." Sasuke smiled a little at the blonde's words, sighing quietly.

"You can't stop thoughts when they plague you, Naruto," he mumbled, closing his eyes. Naruto started to rub one of his arms in a soothing manner, placing a gentle kiss behind his ear. Sasuke squirmed; still unused to the physical contact Naruto always gave him. Their relationship was an emotional one that was for certain; they were more emotional than most couples were. But they did have a physical side to it; and it always made Sasuke nervous or uncomfortable. Small kisses or holding hands, he could deal with; even being dragged onto Naruto's lap. But when Naruto got more affectionate than normal, Sasuke tried to get away from him.

The memory of freezing, pale hands and two smouldering golden eyes burning into his skull would always come up; making him jumpy and untouchable to anyone.

He heard the blonde sigh softly behind him, and was allowed to sit back on the ground, picking up his sketchpad as he slipped out of the blonde's hold. Naruto looked at him for a moment, before slipping back to his seat on the edge, looking over at Gaara who stared at him quietly; patiently waiting to talk to his friend.

"Did you stare?" He asked teasingly, and the red head rolled his green eyes, a small smile pulling the corner of his lips. "I'll take that as a yes,"

"Whatever,"

* * *

Naruto stretched his arms over his head as he walked into his German class, looking around when he spotted Shino sitting to the side by the windows. He grinned, seeing Kankuro in the seat behind the bug lover, before he walked over to them. "You guys takin' German with me? That's exciting."

Kankuro grinned as he saw the blonde sit down in front of Shino, the brunette looking at him lazily. "I sense this class will be hectic if we got the three of us in here."

"Nah; Shino here will avoid trouble like the plague," Naruto said, rudely pointing a thumb at the bug boy. Shino rose an eyebrow, and Naruto guessed his narrowed his eyes behind his glasses because he thought he felt a heated glare coming from the Aburame, before the paler boy looked away, out the window. Naruto sighed, looking at Kankuro again. "So who's the teacher for this class?"

"Eh, I 'unno. I've never heard of her before." Kankuro said, shrugging a little. "I never took a second language until now."

"I took Italian a few years ago…But that's a memory I don't want to remember." Naruto muttered, frowning a little as flashes of his past shot before his eyes. He then shook his head, turning to the front as the door opened. He rose an eyebrow as an unrecognizable a woman walked up to the front; her hair black and trailing down to her waist, wearing a floral skirt and a peasant shirt with heels. She turned, grey eyes looking at them sharply, before a kind smile lit her soft featured face.

"Hallo," she greeted kindly, looking at them with her sharp eyes. "My name is Isabella Mansfield, and I shall be your German instructor this semester. This is basic German class, so I hope that you have all of the needed text books, not paper, pens and the like. If you do not yet have a text book, come see me after class, and I shall order you one from the library." She paused, looking around the room before she smiled. "If you could all stand and state your name, I shall be happy. We'll start over here with this young blonde,"

Naruto sighed, standing up lazily, and looked at Ms. Mansfield with an uncaring glance. "Naruto Uzumaki," he said, before sitting down. The woman nodded, indicating for the next person to stand, and the class went on like that.

Once everyone was introduced, Ms. Mansfield said something in German, before writing it down on the chalkboard, writing the translation down below it as she explained some simple things about it. As the other students listened to rapt attention, Naruto gazed out the window, watching as the cars drove by and the people walked quickly up and down the streets. Just another ordinary day for those who had ordinary, boring lives of peace and solitude; living with their families and having small get-togethers whenever they felt the urge.

Nothing like the life of a gang member.

He closed his eyes, his mind falling back into a memory he had tried to forget many years ago…When he was in Venice…Soft words being whispered into his ear…

_The young boy smiled as he looked up at the starlight, eyes wide in wonderment; he had never seen so many stars! He turned his blue gaze over to the older man beside him, smiling at him softly. "It's nice, isn't it love?" The man said gently, placing an arm around the shorter boy's shoulders. The blonde nodded, leaning against the man's broad chest, eyes closed. "How long will you stay here?" _

_It was a familiar question, and one that Naruto didn't want to think about. "…For however long they'll let me." He said, turning around and looking up at the man, smiling as his kind brown eyes crinkled in warmth. "I'll stay with you for as long as I am able," _

_The man nodded, brushing back some of his blonde hair, before bending down and gently kissing him; Naruto gripping his shirt and standing on his toes to kiss him back. The man pulled away, and leaned his lips to Naruto's ear, making the younger boy shudder at his warm breath. _

"_I love you…" _

_Naruto smiled, resting his head on the man's chest. "I love you too…" _

"…Ruto?" The blonde looked up at Ms. Mansfield as she looked at him worriedly. "Naruto, class has been over for three minutes," she said, looking at him with a slight frown. "Are you alright?"

"…Yeah," Naruto mumbled, standing up and brushing off his pants, smiling at her. "I'm fine; thanks for asking!" He then picked up his stuff, waving to her with a grin, before walking out. The black haired woman sighed, crossing her arms as she watched him go, sticking her hip out a little with a pout.

"…I think he was lying to me."

* * *

Naruto walked out of the changing room, looking at his all-boys gym class, before he turned to see Zabuza Momochi standing there; skin a dark grey, his eyes a dark grey as well. His black hair was cut short, and was slightly spiked, and he wore black track pants and a white wife beater, black running sneakers on his feet. He looked the same as he did every year…With one thing new.

Bandages were wrapped around his neck and the lower half of his face, as if he had some sort of burn wound on the lower half of his face and neck. His eyes were narrowed, brows furrowed in a permanent angry look; his arms crossed in front of his chest as he waited with seeming impatience. The blonde rose an eyebrow at this new look, walking up to him quietly. "Zabuza why the hell are you dressed like you were in the gang?" He asked in a harsh whisper. Zabuza glanced down at him, dark eyes unreadable, before he looked away.

"I thought it was time I accept who I actually am for once," he mumbled. "No more hiding."

"The Zabuza of Bijuu died the day Haku died," Naruto muttered darkly, glaring up at him. "You know that."

"Then he must've been resurrected." The gym teacher sighed, placing a hand to his forehead as he closed his eyes. "Naruto, when Haku died he had one wish for me," he said, looking at the blonde as he stiffened. "He wanted me to stay in Bijuu…He wanted me to protect you."

"…Did he actually say that?" Naruto mumbled, looking at the ground. He heard Zabuza's noise of confirming, before he sighed tiredly. "I'm still not forgiving you."

"Never expected you to, brat." Zabuza muttered, crossing his arms again. Naruto then looked at him with a sarcastic smirk.

"Welcome back then Demon." Zabuza grinned behind his bandages, and Naruto could just imagined the fanged teeth shining dangerously behind their cover. The rest of the gym class then filed in front of Zabuza, and he straightened, Naruto backing into the crowd.

"Alright you punk asses; this is the first day so don't expect any easy shit from me. We're gonna do five laps around the school and then other warm up exercises. Then we'll be starting our lesson with basketball. No get your asses moving!" The students scrambled to the outside door after Zabuza harshly barked his orders. As they ran by, he nodded a little to Naruto who jogged by him lazily, and the blonde nodded back, before turning his head and catching up to the others.

The gym teacher sighed, stretching his arms over his head as he looked at the roof. This would definitely be an interesting year.

* * *

Sasuke stood outside the school doors, looking up at the sky as the clouds rolled by; the sky a happy blue. He frowned, looking away just as the door opened and Sakura strolled out with Neji. The pinkette kissed the Hyuuga's cheek, whispering something to him before she let go of his hand, running over to Sasuke. She glomped him at that moment, and Sasuke stepped back a little to steady himself; hands on her waist as he held her steady. "Hello to you too." He said, smirking at her. Sakura grinned cheekily, pulling away before she looped her arm through Sasuke's, walking towards their apartment as if they were some sort of Dorothy and Scarecrow duo.

"How was first day?" She asked, looking up at him with interested green orbs. He looked down at her for a moment, before looking to the side as he sighed. "That bad, eh?"

"Not really; my art teacher's nice enough, and I like Health alright." He said, shrugging with one shoulder; absentmindedly adjusting the strap of his backpack as he did so. "It's just…It's really weird this year." He said, and then smiled a little bitterly. "I guess that's just me, though."

"Nah, I don't think so." Sakura said, resting her head on Sasuke's shoulder. Over the summer the two had become like brother and sister, Sakura always clinging to him in a playful manner because she knew he wouldn't shove her away. "I mean, Kabuto appeared, Sasori had to quit Akatsuki; things are a mess right now." She sighed softly, before looking up at him with a gentle smile. "At least some good things happened today, right? You got to spend some time with your blondie."

"Yeah, guess so." Sasuke said, smirking down at her again before he sighed, looking forward. "But not even that could make things right this year."

"…Sasuke, you have to move on sweetheart." Sakura said softly, looking down at the ground sadly. "He wouldn't want you to stay so miserable."

"He's gone though, so he doesn't have a say whether I'm happy or not." Sasuke muttered darkly. "Damn Orochimaru…I hope he's burning in hell."

"He is, Sasuke-kun," the pinkette leaned up, kissing his cheek gently. "Don't you worry, he is; I'm sure of it."

Sasuke looked over at her, bending down and gently kissing the top of her head in a sibling affection. "Thanks Sakura…"


	3. Helpless Day

A/N: Hey all! Eheh...I haven't updated in a bit, have I? Well, I blame writer's block; but I think I've found the killer of my lovely writer's block, and the plot bunnies have been multiplying; so yay. Anyhow, I hope you enjoy this segment! We'll get into more plot soon enough; right now I'm trying to give little filler things. Fill in your unending quench for NaruSasu moments. For the plot's heavy in this as well; this is probably all you'll be seeing of our lovely unstable couple here. Eheh.

I was listening to D'espairsRay's 'Forbidden' when I wrote this. It's one of the things that got me to continue writing. I wrote this at different times, so the style of writing might be a little different; ignore any and all typos. If anyone wants to brave it, they can try to be my beta? God knows I need one...

Disclaimer: Naruto and Co. belong to Masashi Kishimoto.

* * *

Sasuke woke up two hours before his alarm clock was set. Sighing, he pulled himself from the bed, running fingers through his hair as he stumbled out of the bed, going towards the door to go to the bathroom. He looked outside at the paling sky, smiling a little, before he walked out of his room into the hall.

He flipped the switch of the bathroom, wincing when the bright light reflected off of the white tile of the room, before he adjusted to the light and closed the door. He stripped of his pajamas—a pair of black boxers and a baggy dark blue T-shirt—throwing them into the basket before he walked to his shower. He leaned over the rim of the tub, turning the dial to the degree of warmth he liked in his morning showers, before he pulled over the curtain, pulling up the peg that turned the shower on. Yawning, he stepped in, stepping under the head of the shower; the water pounding down on him, running down his neck, shoulder blades and back in a soothing manner.

Life had gotten a little too mechanical after Itachi had died. When he had first died, Sasuke avoided his room like the plague, not wanting to see the things that would remind him of his brother; his shirts on the floor, his books, and the homework he had yet to complete. But after Christmas when they were all on break, Sasuke had finally walked into his room for the first time after about three and a half weeks. He had found different little things he didn't know his brother had; tiny notes that told Itachi about meetings at either Bijuu or Akatsuki, reminders to check on him as he slept to make sure he wasn't having nightmares.

He hadn't known his brother was such a busy person.

Scrubbing his hair free of the shampoo and conditioner he had used, Sasuke turned the shower off, pulling back the curtain and stepping out onto the rug, grabbing a towel and towel-drying himself off.

After that first entrance, Sasuke went into Itachi's room more and more, taking comfort in the room; feeling his brother's presence in the sheets of his bed or in the folded clothes in the drawer. He hadn't touched his computer, though; he had always been forbidden to touch his computer for reasons unknown to Sasuke.

He wrapped a towel around his slim waist, grabbing another towel to dry off his hair as he walked out of the bathroom back to his room; the halls eerily quiet.

Whenever it rained, Sasuke would sleep in Itachi's room; as if he had taken Itachi's fear when the elder Uchiha sibling had died. And maybe he had; Sasuke couldn't stand thunderstorms now, and before he hadn't cared. He still didn't fear the dark, though; the dark had always been there for him to help him forget memories. Fears. It swallowed everything he couldn't handle anymore until the daylight came back and everything came crashing back onto him.

He pulled out a dark blue long sleeved shirt and white cargo pants, pulling out black socks as he did so before he grabbed a pair of white boxers. Slipping into his clothes, he brushed his hair, walking to the kitchen to make himself some breakfast.

When Itachi had died, Sasuke had realized he needed to learn how to cook for himself. And so over the summer, he had taken summer cooking classes, and learned some different meals and deserts; thankfully he could make all of them without burning down the house. He walked into the kitchen, pulling out some bacon, eggs and bread along with ham and butter, before he started to get ready to cook; putting a bandana on around his head to keep his hair out of his face before he put on a plain white apron around his waist.

As he got ready to make some bacon, he heard his door unlock, and looked over to see Sakura saunter in with a half-dead Ino being dragged behind her. "Hello Sasuke-kun!" Sakura greeted cheerfully. Sasuke smirked, nodding to her as he continued on his merry way, putting on some extra pieces of bacon and ham.

"Could you get me some more eggs, Sakura?" He asked, and the pinkette nodded, sitting the blonde girl down at the table before walking to the fridge, pulling out some eggs. "Thanks; how do you want them?"

"Over easy." Sakura said, smiling. "And Ino wants hers scrambled."

"Alright, thanks."

It was common for the two girls to come at this dangerously early hour of the morning for breakfast, because they had learned that once Sasuke learned to cook, his food was actually really good. And so, Sasuke usually cooked breakfast for the three of them.

"No problem."

* * *

Naruto sighed as he walked down the streets in the slums, nodding to a few of the hobos he knew personally as they waved to him cheerfully. As he turned a corner, he came across a lighted lot, the grass mowed as it always was, the marker in the middle lit up by the spotlights as it always was.

He smiled, walking over to the monument and knelt in front of it, placing his hand on the newly carved name on it. "Hey Tachi," he muttered, smiling serenely. "How's the afterlife? Better be good; Sasuke's been praying for your soul to be safe ever since you died. If you still got sucked into hell it may break the teme's heart."

He sighed sitting on the grass as he looked at the grave marker. "Have you spoken to Rin and Obito lately? If so, tell 'em I said hey, alright? They're probably busy making googly eyes at each other; too busy to come and see me when I visit them here." He sighed, shaking his head. "Maybe you're too busy, too; but if you're listening to me, send 'em my message alright?"

He stood up then, placing a hand on the monument again, closing his eyes. A shiver ran down his spine, and the faint image of a young man stood behind him, placing a hand on top of his head with a smile before he disappeared. Naruto's eyes opened then, and he smiled a little softly; Itachi had heard him.

He then sighed, turning and walking back to the sidewalk, walking down the streets towards Sasuke's apartment; he'd be making breakfast for Ino, Sakura and himself by now. Maybe he could join them.

That'd be nice.

* * *

Sakura walked over to the door when the three heard a knock, opening it quietly to reveal a smiling blonde, hand behind his head in a nervous manner. "Did I come too late for breakfast?"

"Nah; there's still plenty of food left for you to engorge."

"I am not an engorger."

"…Yes you are," the pinkette teased, poking his tummy, before stepping aside to let him in. "Sasuke-kun! Naruto's here!"

"I heard," the onyx eyed boy looked up at the blonde, smirking a little. "Hey dobe."

"Teme." Naruto grinned, sitting down at his usual seat while Sakura skipped to the cupboards to get him a plate and a glass of orange juice. The blonde laid his arms on the table, closing his eyes and yawning a little. It was still early, but he knew Sasuke had a nasty habit of waking up before his alarm clock. It was a habit Naruto had learned firsthand when he'd wake up with his alarm clock, and find the black haired Uchiha conveniently missing from his arms.

He sighed in dismay at the thought, and the slowly waking Ino looked at him with a slightly odd gaze, before she continued to eat her bacon and eggs. Naruto rolled his eyes at the other blonde, sitting up as Sakura walked up to him, placing a plate in front of him with scrambled eggs. "Ooh, scrambled." He said, smirking, before he picked some bacon and sausage from the plate in front of them filled with the cooked meats, taking his orange juice gratefully from the pinkette. Sakura smiled, sitting back in her seat next to Sasuke, eating the rest of her breakfast while Sasuke stood up with his empty plate, taking Ino's as he passed by her.

The Uchiha placed the plates into the sink to be washed later, leaning against the counter as he gazed at the back of the Uzumaki eating at his table. It was just like last year, when the blonde would pop in to visit Itachi and him on the weekends in the morning or late evening, and he'd stay for breakfast or dinner. Itachi would always cook something big for the Uzumaki because he knew the blonde ate a lot, and Naruto was always grateful. It was a comfortable atmosphere…

He missed it…

He blinked when he saw deep blue eyes looking into his onyx, and blushed, looking away from his boyfriend's curious gaze before he walked over to Sakura and Naruto, plucking their empty plates from in front of them. Naruto watched him oddly as he walked back to the sink, a bright, healthy blush on his cheeks. The blonde grinned cheekily, picking up everyone's glasses and walking to the sink, placing them into the sink before wrapping his arms around Sasuke's waist.

"You're so cute when you blush…"

"…Shut up…" Sasuke muttered, making Naruto grin and Sakura giggle with Ino at the table, the blonde female finally awake enough to see the cute exchange. Naruto then separated himself from the Uchiha, stretching his arms over his head for a moment, before looking at the three third years. "Come on, guys; we gotta head to the school soon."

"Yeah," Sakura agreed, looking at the digital clock on Sasuke's stove. "We should get going now…Come on, Ino; let's grab our stuff at the apartment."

"Yeah, yeah," the Yamanaka girl stood up, smiling and waving coyly to Naruto and Sasuke. "Don't do anything Sakura wouldn't do!"

"HEY!" The pinkette whacked Ino's head, pushing her out the door as the blonde whined, and Naruto laughed. The door closed, and the two lovers were left on their own. Sasuke looked over at the blonde with a questioning gaze, and Naruto smiled at him softly, bending over and gently kissing him. Sasuke kissed him back just as softly, before the blonde pulled away from the sweet exchange.

"Tease," Sasuke muttered, and Naruto laughed, poking his forehead before he walked to his bag at the door, picking up the dark boy's as he did so.

"I may be a tease but I was serious when I said we should get going; Kakashi plans on going early today."

"He's going to be on time?"

"I know, it's a miracle; but I didn't ask him about it." Sasuke nodded, walking over to the blonde and taking his backpack. He slipped his jacket on before slipping the straps of his backpack on, sighing a little. "There's a meeting in Bijuu after school." Naruto muttered after an awkward moment of silence.

Sasuke looked at him, his eyes dead before he nodded. "Alright,"

He then turned to look at the empty apartment, sighing softly. 'Ready? Set? Go.' He whispered in his mind, before opening the door, letting Naruto and him out before closing and locking it behind him.

* * *

Everyone stared at Kakashi oddly as he stood in front of them just as the bell rang. They continued to stare at him oddly even after five minutes after the bell, and Kakashi sighed tiredly, closing his eye. "I'm early; as I'm sure you've all noticed." He started awkwardly, and they all nodded slowly, waiting for him to continue. "…There's actually no real reason for it; I just felt like being early." The silver haired teacher finished, smiling through his mask. Sasuke narrowed his eyes a little suspiciously with Kiba, who was in his English class this year.

"Kakashi, I doubt this." The Uchiha said after everyone murmured about the odd behaviour of their teacher. "We know you have reasons for being early; last time it was a pop quiz, and that was last year." Kakashi blinked, smiling nervously and rubbing the back of his head.

"Really? Wow; I forgot all about that!" He said, laughing, and the students stared at him deadpanned. He sighed, shaking his head at them all, before he walked onto the dais, shrugging as he folded his hands behind his back. "I'm just early today, alright? No reason," he said, looking over at the kids in their seats, before he sighed, picking up a piece of chalk, and writing a few things. He then stepped back, sitting down. "It's a riddle; whoever figures it out will write it down, give it to me, and they pass for the first half of the semester. Though you still have to try. Whoever hands in a piece of paper and it's wrong, they get docked five marks." He picked up a blue cover book with a high rating on the back, opening it and reading it. "Have fun."

"…You're such a lazy ass," Kiba muttered, looking at the riddle with narrowed eyes. "Not even teaching us crap."

"I am! I'm making you use your brains."

"Kakashi, Kiba might die today from using his brain too much," Sakura teased from the back, grinning. Kakashi chuckled softly under his breath, shaking his head slightly.

_Until I am measured, I am not known. Yet how you miss me when I have flown. _

Sasuke stared at the riddle for a moment, before he looked around the room quietly, eyes landing on the clock. 'How you miss me when I have flown…' He frowned for a moment, taking out a piece of paper and writing down the answer, folding it up and walking up to the desk, putting the paper on the desk. He nodded to Kakashi, who nodded back, before he walked back to his desk, sitting down and pulling out his sketchpad, flipping to a blank page. He took out his pencils, eraser and sharpener, before he started to sketch out on the white page, ignoring everything around him as he concentrated on an image in his mind.

Twenty minutes later, with a rough concept sketch in the works on the paper, eraser marks and residue everywhere, the last student handed in the paper, and Kakashi took them all, looking through them. He sighed after ten minutes, closing his eyes. "Sakura and Sasuke are the only ones that passed it; the rest of you are docked five marks." He then looked at them all with a lazy, bored look. "It's time."

The class groaned at the obviousness of the question, before grumbling as they took out their text books while Kakashi was writing on the board again what those who failed had to do for the rest of the class. The pinkette looked at the dark boy with a grin, and Sasuke nodded back, before he continued his sketch, closing his eyes, before he opened them, erasing something.

His jaw didn't look like that…

* * *

The bell rang, and Naruto walked out of Science with a dull look to his eyes, walking down the hall as he held back a yawn. He had Geography this period with Jiraiya; why he was taking Geography in his last year, Naruto would never know. Maybe it was because it was his easiest class and Jiraiya was the easiest teacher to get off track?

The blonde thought of these possibilities for a moment, before he nodded slightly; that sounded about right. He then walked into the class after walking down a flight of stairs to the floor below, flopping into his seat near the door, leaning back on his seat as he waited for the other students and the teacher to arrive.

Finally, when the late bell rang, Jiraiya walked in, swiping back his pure white hair before he turned to look at the class with a slight grin; his broad face stretched from the smile, the red painted lines under his eyes stretching slightly. "Hello class, to another day of hell." He greeted jovially. "Today we'll be studying the human side of geography, and will continue to study that for two weeks, before we go back to the geographical side of geography." He walked to the chalkboard, writing something quickly in his chicken scratch that he called his handwriting, and the students deciphered the code—we mean his writing until they finally got what the note was going to be.

Naruto scribbled down the notes in his slightly neater chicken scratch, knowing that only Jiraiya and he himself would ever be able to read it if someone tried to copy his notes; his tongue sticking out slightly as he wrote down word for word what was on the board quickly and efficiently. After ten minutes of writing, Jiraiya stepped back, talking as the students finished up the notes, writing down quick little side notes on important information he said and asking questions.

Finally, when people started to get tired of geography, a few looked over in Naruto's direction and the blonde smirk, standing up as Jiraiya was talking. Jiraiya stopped, watching as Naruto walked up to him briskly, standing to him face-to-face. The teacher blinked as the student's smirk grew a little wider, until…

"How's Icha Icha Tactics going?"

A knowing smirk filled the faces of the students as Jiraiya got a dreamy look to his eyes, and he started to blabber about this was going to be his newest masterpiece. While he babbled like some sort of broken record, Naruto walked back to his seat, sitting there with a triumphant look on his face, nodding as people silently clapped, congratulating him. For the rest of the class—which they had fifteen minutes of—Naruto would give topics for Jiraiya to talk about and he'd go on about it. Finally, when Jiraiya was slowly learning what was going on, the bell rang and the students all grabbed their bags, booking it out of the class.

Jiraiya stood there stupidly as Naruto peeked back, grinning at him like a fox, before he disappeared again, before the white-haired man swore; he'd been duped again.

…Why didn't they let the poor guy teach his lesson?

* * *

Sasuke stretched his arms over his head as he walked into the gym room, looking around with a lazy look, a slight frown on his lips. He saw Tenten waving him over, and walked over to her quietly, standing with Neji, who was also in his gym class and Shikamaru, who yawned widely behind his hand, eyes closed as they all waited for Anko to appear in her dramatic glory.

Suddenly, the door was kicked open, and Anko stood there with one leg lifted, held completely straight before she placed it on the ground, walking into the gym just as the door started to fall back closed. "Hello maggots!" She called out cheerfully. "We're gonna start this semester with badminton, because I wanna see the guys complain about how this is girly."

"But Anko, badminton actually has males on their teams, and males seem to like it." Tenten spoke up, smirking as Anko shot a glare to her. The brunette shrugged, and Anko sighed, running her hand through her dark violet bangs before she grinned at them all like some sort of crazed animal, a dangerous glint in her pale eyes.

"Well then; we'll be doing it until; after Christmas then, and then we'll start on our field hockey unit." She nodded to herself, liking this plan, and the students all shrugged; they were good sports. But Sasuke sighed at their naivety; if they thought this was going to be easy, none of them had truly paid attention to Anko's classes before…Which was hard, because Anko would scream at you if you weren't paying attention. Child abuse? Everyone liked to think so. Anyone do anything about it? Ah, hell no.

She then barked at them to go get their rackets and two birdies, telling them to get into pairs. Neji tapped Sasuke's shoulder, mutely asking if he wanted to partner up, and the Uchiha nodded, jogging with everyone else to the supply closet in the back of the gym, getting into line to wait to get his racket and birdies. Tenten teamed up with Shikamaru when she saw the Hyuuga and Uchiha team up, the girl poking Nara's side to get him to pay attention. He looked at her tiredly, and she grinned a little, pushing him to the supply closet forcefully; not that he seemed like he minded too much. In fact, he was indifferent to it all, even when a randomly flying birdie hit his forehead harshly, bouncing off and landing feet behind him. All he did was blink as the person called out an apology, shrugging as he continued to let himself be pushed.

Finally, the dark boy and the brunette grabbed their rackets and birdies, going over to a set up net. Neji went over to the side of the net closest to the wall, leaving Sasuke with the side of the net in the middle of the gym. Sasuke then tapped the birdie quietly in the proper way, watching as it floated over to Neji, who tapped it back.

This went on for fifteen minutes when suddenly a shrill whistle was heard and everyone looked over at Kabuto to see him smiling a little awkwardly, holding a rolled up sheet of paper. "What is it, doc?" Anko called out, annoyed. Sasuke scowled at him and Neji had to steep under the net and grab his shoulder before he did anything stupid. "Can't ya tell we're in the middle of a friggin' lesson?"

"Just thought I'd warn you all, letting you know I'm posting up the results of your medical yesterday." The silver haired young man explained, smiling behind his glasses, before he walked to the wall, pinning it with sticky tape. He then nodded to everyone, pausing as his eyes fell on Sasuke. "Could I see you for a moment, Sasuke?"

Sasuke frowned, before he nodded, yanking his shoulder from the Hyuuga's shoulder as he followed after the new school medic. Anko and Neji watched them with worried eyes, before they walked to the results just like everyone else.

Meanwhile, Sasuke stepped into Kabuto's office, looking around the square little room before glancing at him. "What is it?"

"Did you ever sell drugs to a woman named Midoriko Haruno?"

Sasuke narrowed his eyes, frowning as he stared at Kabuto harshly. "What the hell are you talking about, you freak?" He hissed.

"When you sold drugs, did you ever sell some to a woman named Midoriko Haruno? She had red hair, bright green eyes. She might've looked like this," he held up a photo of a woman that looked vaguely like Sakura. Her last name was the same too…And those eyes…They were identical!

Sasuke thought for a moment, before a brief moment flashed in his mind and he hissed through his teeth, placing a hand to his temple as he got more than he bargained for. "Yeah; she was addicted to crystal meth; she dead now or something?"

"No, she's off any drug. But she seemed to be pregnant when she finally stopped…Two months in, actually." Kabuto frowned a little. "She's Sakura Haruno's mother."

"WHAT?" Sasuke's eyes widened and something twisted in his gut.

"Mhm; and it seems her addiction made Sakura get a strange type of infection in her lungs.

"…She always did have a problem running long distances…" Sasuke muttered, looking to the side. He then glared at Kabuto. "Why are you telling me this?"

"…I want to help you, Sasuke; and I'll do that by helping you remember medical problems of yours." He gasped as he was suddenly punched in the gut, grabbed by the throat as he doubled over and slammed into the wall, all within the same time span.

"I don't need your fuckin' help," He hissed dangerously, eyes swirling red. "Don't offer something unwanted." He then let go of him, but not before giving him a little shove into the wall, walking out of the office with a dark aura around him; almost murderous.

Kabuto gasped as he leaned against the wall, gripping his eyes with wide, terrified eyes. Sasuke had gotten more dangerous than when he had last known him…

* * *

Lunch finally came, and Naruto sighed as he climbed up the fire escape to the roof where Bijuu sat, milling around and talking to one another quietly, Sasuke separated from the others, hunched over his sketchpad as he drew quietly, completely concentrated on the drawing. The blonde cocked his head to the side at the brunette's odd behaviour, before he walked over to him, sitting on the ledge beside him. He ruffled his hair fondly, and Sasuke glanced up at him, letting him know he acknowledged him, before he went back to drawing.

The Uzumaki then looked over at Gaara with a slight grin, crossing his arms lazily. "Have you gone to visit Hinata lately?" He asked slyly, and he thought he saw the faintest sight of a blush on the pale red head's cheeks.

"Two days ago, with Hyuuga." Gaara muttered, looking down into his lap where he had his hands clasped together loosely, his thumb stroking the side of one of his hands. Naruto nodded, his grin turning softer until it was a small smile, and Gaara glanced up at him. "She's doing well; she should be back to school in a month."

"I'm glad for that; this place just isn't the same without our Hime, you know?" Gaara nodded, and Naruto smiled a little. "Hinata's like family to you, isn't she?"

"The Hyuuga cousins are kind to me…And they're the only ones that can calm me. If I ever had need of staying with a family if something happened to Temari and Kankuro…It would be them." He nodded a little, closing his eyes as he thought over his answer before looking over at Naruto. "Why do you ask me this?"

"Just curious, Gaara…" Naruto muttered, shrugging a little. "Just curious…"

* * *

Naruto walked into German class quietly, going into his seat in front of Shino, Kankuro napping behind him as they waited for Ms. Mansfield to come into class. Naruto was folding some paper when they woman walked in briskly, stepping onto the dais and turning to look at them with her dark eyes, a kind smile on her lips as usual. "Guter nachmittag, kursteilnehmer," she greeted, and everyone stared at her oddly. She let out a laugh, smiling at them. "I said, 'Good afternoon, students'." She translated, and everyone smiled at her, nodding. "Alright then, now that the greetings are done, I want you all to do first day sheets for me." She went to her desk, picking up a stack of papers and handing them to Naruto to pass around.

The blonde did so happily, sending back the stack after he had grabbed his sheet, looking at the odd words on the page. He mumbled some of them, thinking in his head how…EVIL he sounded, before looking up at Ms. Mansfield as the last person grabbed their paper. The woman smiled at them easily, starting the lesson quietly, and Naruto copied what she wrote on the board, writing the translations as she said them. After a while, when she was done writing on the board and asked them all to do the first day sheets, Naruto filled it out quickly, leaning back in his seat after he was done and looking out the window.

He shivered slightly as he felt what felt like hands on his neck and shoulders, running smooth fingers down his spine, and he closed his eyes tightly, trying to get rid of the feeling; such a familiar feeling…

He heard someone clear their throats, and looked back to see Shino staring at him oddly. Naruto blinked, looking at his desk with a slight blush; did he do something stupid? He closed his eyes tightly at his own stupidity, sighing quietly under his breath before he got up with the bell, handing in the sheet to her with everyone else as he made his way out the door.

A coy smile filled his eyes as he walked out, kind brown eyes looking at him with what he had once thought was love…

"_You weren't raped, Naruto…" _

"_I was damn close, Kakashi, and you fuck well know it."_

And he truly was…

* * *

Sasuke sighed as he rested his head in his lap as Hayate spoke about something; he guessed it was what happened when people abused drugs and alcohol, Sasuke wasn't sure. All he was knew was that he wasn't going to be doing that crap any time soon…

Again…

He stood up as the bell rang, and he ran his fingers through his hair, grabbing his backpack and his sketchpad, nodding to the brown haired man as he walked past with the other horde of students, walking into the halls. Sasuke stopped by his locker quickly, grabbing his jacket and shutting the door, putting the lock on before he walked to the front doors. Sakura was going over to Neji's that day, Ino going to go have her shift at Yamanaka Flowers in downtown. So the Uchiha stood there waiting for only one other person.

The blonde walked out just when Sasuke thought of him, and the Uchiha smirked as he kissed Naruto quietly; ignoring the disgusted glares from a few males and the excited squeals from a few females. He pulled back, taking Naruto's hand and they walked down the sidewalk quietly together, heading towards Naruto's house.

"So you don't have to work today?"

"No, Masashi gave me a day off; he said I earned it." Sasuke said, looking at him quietly before he looked back at the ground. Naruto looked at him quietly, squeezing his hand, and a small smile spread over his face before he leaned his head on Naruto's shoulder, closing his eyes tiredly.

"I just want to lay down when we get there…" He mumbled quietly. Naruto smiled, kissing the top of his head quietly before he nodded.

"Same."


	4. Crashing Down

A/N: Thanks to a reviewer, I found a blunder in the last chapter. But I pulled something clever out of my ass, and now it has been fixed! _(sighs in relief) _BUT ANYHOW! Chapter 4 of 'Demon's World' is the beginning to the heavy plot that we all know and love. Except now, instead of the focus being Sasuke, our loveable emo, it's now on Naruto! Our loveable gang leader! And he has quite the doozy of a past! Nothing drastic...Ish...Like Sasuke's, though. I don't think. Eheh. _(still thinking of it as we speak? Why yes) _So anyhow! Enjoy chapter four!

AND THANK Wolfgirl21 FOR BEING AWESOME. If it weren't for her, this chapter would most likely be RIDDLED with mistakes! Eheh. SO THANK YOU! I LOVE YOU PLATONICALLY. _(cries because she finally has a beta. God answered her prayers)_

Disclaimer: Naruto and Co. belong to Masashi Kishimoto.

* * *

Lying on the couch in the comfort of his blonde's arms, Sasuke let his mind wander to gym class, something that had been bothering him all day. Why did it seem like…something Kabuto told him was _off_? Like, the information he gave him was incorrect or something?

Sighing, he closed his eyes, moving closer to Naruto to take in his comforting warmth, head resting on his shoulder while his right hand gripped the blonde's shirt with a loose hold. Their legs were tangled together, and the blonde was sleeping beside him, mouth slightly opened, eyes gently closed, his hair loosely falling into his face, framing it and almost making him look innocent. But only almost. Naruto's arm had wrapped around Sasuke's waist, pulling him up close to him so that they were pressed against each other comfortably. It was one of the only positions that Sasuke could stand to be in for a long time; something he didn't mind because Orochimaru had never held him tenderly. Only glanced at him with unadulterated lust in his eyes.

This was odd, since Sasuke had been ten. The Uchiha inwardly shuddered.

Sighing again, obsidian eyes still closed, he tried to clear his muddled mind. Fine black hair fell into his face, making his cheek twitch a little as it lightly tickled that spot, but he didn't bother to move it aside. He was much too comfortable to move, anyhow.

"_No, she was off any drugs. But she seemed to be pregnant when she finally stopped…Two months in, actually." Kabuto frowned a little. "She's Sakura Haruno's mother."_

'He said that…Sakura's mother had been pregnant when she was buying drugs from me…with Sakura…' He furrowed his brow as his mind, slowly clearing, started to make sense of what was told to him. 'But how is that possible? Sakura's my age…I was at her birthday party in March…' His eyes slowly opened as he bit his bottom lip. 'I had seen a picture of her mother and father; her father had red hair…her mom had…white…' His eyes widened and the grip on Naruto's shirt tightened as something finally clicked in his mind.

"Kabuto…lied to me…"

* * *

The next day was a Friday, and so, Kabuto was getting ready for a lazy day of school with a few kids coming in with headaches, sprained wrists and the like. Looking at his clipboard, which held the medical health of the teachers, Kabuto was surprised when his door was opened.

Glancing up, the silver haired man paled when he saw Sasuke Uchiha standing there with a neutral, passive look on his face; hands in his pockets, hips slightly sticking out as if trying to stay away from everyone in the world. He wore a high collar dark blue T-shirt, and black jeans with a chain on his left hip, white K-Swiss© sneakers with black strips on the sides on his feet. His backpack was on one shoulder on his back, and his head was slightly cocked to the side, as if he were curious about something. Those dark eyes, which Kabuto loathed and feared, stared at him for a long time, before his lips tugged down in a frown, and his eyes narrowed.

"You lied to me." Sasuke muttered. His voice was emotionless, but Kabuto knew he was angry. Sasuke was only ever this eerily calm when he was angry; at least, the Sasuke Kabuto had known had always been this eerily calm when he was angry. Perhaps Orochimaru and he had been wrong in assuming Sasuke was still the same as he had been as a child?

"Whatever do you mean, Sasuke?" Kabuto asked with a smile, an easy mask he had fallen into when he had dealt with children in Oto. Sasuke's face suddenly twisted into a snarl, though he stayed where he was, only shifting in his spot. Kabuto audibly gulped, looking at him carefully as he waited to see what he would do. His shoulders were tensed and it almost seemed like he had his hackles raised, as if about to pounce on him and tear him to pieces.

"About Sakura and her mom. Sakura's mother's name isn't Midoriko; it's Lillian. She's American." Sasuke narrowed his eyes even more so that they were like snake eyes, slit and dangerous. "She has white hair, and she's never once done drugs. Sakura just has asthma, but it's sport-induced." He stepped forward then, and Kabuto stepped back. "She did have a sister, though; Sakura told me all about her sister, Midoriko. How she had been dating some druggie abusive bastard that knocked her up and got her pregnant. She had fallen into her boyfriend's habit of doing drugs, and it ended up killing her in the end. I remember hearing about it in the news; the Haruno's are a big name, Kabuto. You don't think I couldn't look up about this in the newspaper? They were ashamed of how their daughter acted and so they locked themselves away from society, sending Sakura to a modern public school and going on business trips outside of the country."

He took another step forward, Kabuto another step back, and Sasuke sneered at his cowardice. "And you said I haven't changed. It's you who hasn't changed at all, Kabuto, always the coward, hiding behind the stronger man. But guess what? Orochimaru's dead, Kabuto, and he's burning in hell probably laughing his ass off because he killed off my brother in the end, someone I held precious."

He took three furious steps forward, grabbed Kabuto by the collar and slammed him against the wall. The sharp edges of a small box on the wall, which was most likely a covered fire alarm, jutted into the silver haired man's back and caused a grimace on his face. "So why'd you lie to me, Kabuto? What's the point? Are you trying to screw me up or something?"

"That's already been done for me," Kabuto said, smirking. "I'm just trying to make you break. I thought if I acted nice and joined your school staff as the medic, I'd be able to get close to you, and feed you lies. You're unstable, Sasuke. Really unstable. I'm surprised you've been able to dupe everyone into thinking you're a stable, sane, functional person who won't just fly off the handle randomly." Kabuto snorted, narrowing his eyes at the angered Uchiha. "I wanna see you break, just like my dad did…"

"Dad…?" Sasuke dropped Kabuto, stepping away from him. "Orochimaru…was your adoptive father…"

"Yeah, and he wanted to see you snap because he thought it'd be entertaining and I guess that's been fed into my mind set." Kabuto shrugged, straightening his shirt. "I guess my little ruse has been discovered, though. Pity." He sighed, pushing up his glasses, the lenses lighting in the florescent lights above them, shining down on them. He glanced at Sasuke with his dark eyes as he saw the dark boy's already pale skin seem to bleach out, his eyes wide in shock.

"Why would you do that, though…?"

"It's your fault Orochimaru's dead; you don't think I wouldn't be angry about that? Sure, I wasn't too fond of the guy, but he was my dad, in a sense. He was the only one that would take me in after my parents died tragically." His grin seemed loose, and Sasuke shuddered. "So I guess this was my try at revenge. I suppose I must suck at it, though, if a mentally unstable person was able to figure me out so quickly."

"I am _not_ mentally unstable!" Sasuke hissed, glaring at him angrily. "And you better stop telling me I am or else I'll—"

"You'll _what_? Kill me? Oh yes, Sasuke-_kun_, that's completely stable all right, randomly killing an innocent man!" Kabuto grinned. "I would rethink that plan if I were you. Now you should leave the office. The others on the roof will be wondering where you are." He smirked at him, nodding, before he turned, picking up his dropped clipboard and flipping through it lazily, a neutral expression on his face.

Sasuke stared at him for a long time, breathing heavily, before he turned, running out of the room. Kabuto glanced back up, smiling a little.

"And maybe, Sasuke…Maybe you can find an excuse to kill me."

* * *

Naruto sighed as he looked up at the sky with a contemplating frown, hands behind him as he leaned on them heavily in thought. The day before, Sasuke had woken him up in a panic, whispering something about Kabuto lying to him. Naruto hadn't caught much of it, since his mind was still groggy from sleep, but if it disturbed Sasuke that much, it must've been bad. The blonde had offered to go with Sasuke when he confronted Kabuto, but Sasuke had said he needed to do it alone.

Now the leader of one of the most powerful gangs in the city was sitting on the roof, worrying his bottom lip as he stared at the cloud filled sky. He had a feeling Shikamaru was looking up at the sky as well with that lazy, half-assed look on his face, thinking about how life was so troublesome.

Speaking of Shikamaru…

"Yo, Shadows," Naruto called out in a lazy drawl, looking back down to the real world and the assorted members on the roof. Sakura and Neji were conveniently missing, but that was because they were hanging out with the other students down on the ground, talking to them easily. Chouji was also missing, but that was because he had gone to get himself some food, and Kankuro and Gaara were gone to visit their sister at her job in the department store a few streets down. Temari had been busy for a while with her new job, barely having any time to come to the out-of-school meetings, but that didn't mean she didn't keep in touch with them all. Life had just gotten a little harder on the eldest Sabaku sibling it all.

"Hn?" Shikamaru looked over at him with a raised eyebrow, blinking lazily. "What's up, Kyuubi?"

"Those medical files on Chidori; you got them yet or has the hospital's security system been upped again?" Shikamaru's face paled a little, and Naruto raised an eyebrow. "Cherry Blossom needs 'em, dude, to finish her files on everyone. You are the best hacker now since Sharingan was killed off last year, and we seriously need those medical files."

Shikamaru sighed, looking at him with wary eyes before he nodded. "I got them a few days ago…" He mumbled, reaching into his pack and pulling out a manila packet. He held the packet out to the blonde, and Naruto leaned forward, grabbing the packet and opening it once it was securely in his hands. He blinked as he pulled up a fairly large folder, weighing it in his hand for a moment, before looking at Shikamaru.

"This is a lot of shit."

"It's a lot of shit." Shikamaru nodded in agreement, sighing as he closed his eyes tiredly. "A lot to read…took me a few hours."

"Hmm," Naruto flipped through some of the files, eyes narrowing as his eyes scanned over a few choice words; damaged, tainted, bad condition, etc. He closed the folder, putting it back into the manila packet just as the topic of their conversation climbed up the fire escape. Naruto grinned lazily, waving over to him as he slid the packet over behind him, hiding it from view. "Hey there!" He called out. Sasuke looked up at him, and Naruto's grin dropped a little as he saw how shaky the dark boy was. The blonde narrowed his eyes, standing up and walking over to him. He grabbed his hand, watching as Sasuke twitched, trying weakly to pull from his grasp. Naruto only tightened his grasp though, looking at him carefully. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Sasuke muttered, shaking his head. Naruto narrowed his eyes, glancing around before he pulled the Uchiha back down the fire escape to the place they had spoken before about how Naruto felt about Chidori. Sasuke looked up at Naruto with shaky eyes, and the blonde wrapped his arms around him comfortingly, kissing the top of his head.

"What happened with Yakushi?" He asked softly, not demanding, but just curious. He had learned over the summer when he saw Sasuke that being demanding was not the way to go about this shaky relationship, so he had to be careful with how he questioned things. If he asked something in the wrong way, Sasuke would become stubborn and refuse to answer him. So of course, the blonde had changed his course of action and decided to be a little gentler with how he asked things that were fragile with Sasuke. When it was something like, 'Did you have breakfast?' Naruto just asked. But with something like this, he had to tread carefully.

"He's not what I expected…" Sasuke whispered, closing his eyes as he took in the blonde's comfort. Naruto rubbed his back soothingly, and the dark haired boy practically melted into him. "He…He's trying to break me, Naruto," Sasuke pushed back, looking up at the Uzumaki as his eyes took on a slightly frightened look, something Naruto hadn't seen since Sasuke came running to him in a panic after having met up with Orochimaru accidentally.

"Break you?" Naruto repeated, narrowing his eyes in confusion. "What do you mean by that, Sasuke?"

"He says I'm unstable, and hell, maybe I am! But he's trying to make me snap. Orochimaru had been out to see me break and now as a sort of revenge for the bastard's death, he's trying to make me break now. He told me so himself, Naruto. He spat it in my face with this sarcastic smirk that…that wasn't like him at all. Kabuto's a coward, right? He's…He's weak and creepy. Not manipulative! Not contemplating! Not calculating! It doesn't make any sense to me!" He buried his face into Naruto's chest, eyes screwed shut as his thin hands grasped at the orange material of Naruto's orange and black long sleeved shirt, the torso orange and the sleeves black.

Sasuke's knees buckled then, and Naruto caught hold of him, bending his own knees—where were covered in dark blue jeans with buckles on the pant legs—and lifted him, holding him carefully as Sasuke buried his face in his neck, as if about to cry.

But Sasuke hadn't cried since Itachi's funeral. And he had sworn to himself he would never cry again.

"Shh…it's okay," Naruto whispered comfortingly, holding him quietly. "It'll be alright…nothing's gonna happen to you…" He closed his dark blue eyes, sighing.

"I promise."

* * *

A blonde haired man sat with his legs crossed, leaning back against the comfortable back of his leather chair, eyes closed, hiding their color. His skin was pale, face in a neutral expression as he sat in what some people might suppose was his thinking position. His fingers were laced in front of him, his elbows resting on the arms of his leather chair, and he wore dark slacks and a light blue turtleneck sweater, his hair a mess with long side bangs. His feet were covered by dark, shiny dress shoes, his right foot, which hung about in the air a little since his leg was crossed, bobbing a little to an inner tune as he thought.

Suddenly, there was a knock at his door, and he frowned a little, upset someone had interrupted his thinking time. Opening his eyes slowly, he revealed dark blue eyes, and they glared at the door with contempt. "Enter." He spoke, his voice was strong with good projection, a voice to give orders and demanded that those orders be listened to.

The door creaked open, and a man walked in quietly, closing the door behind him as he looked at the man behind the mahogany desk with sarcastic brown eyes, silver hair slicked back smoothly. He wore a white long sleeved shirt and black jeans with black combat boots on his feet, and on his index finger on his left hand was a ring. "Hidan," the deep voice rumbled, and the man, Hidan, semi-bowed to him, smirking a little. "What is it?"

"Just confirming some things, sir," Hidan said lightly, straightening and walking over to the desk, sitting down comfortably on the chair in front of the desk, crossing his legs quietly. He clasped his hands on his knee, looking at the blonde man with a grin. "When we dispose of Naruto Uzumaki…I get the body, right? He'll be the perfect sacrifice to my god, of course."

"Of course, Hidan," the man rolled his eyes, smirking a little as he leaned his elbows on the desk, leaning forward and looking at Hidan with contemplating eyes. "I think you want that body for more than just that though, Reaper."

"Of course, Leader," Hidan said smirking. "But really, must we speak of that reason? It's so…insignificant." He waved a hand around in a show of 'insignificance', before standing up again. "I'm glad this was cleared up. I would hate to see what would happen if I tried to take the body…and you wouldn't let me."

"Yes, that would be…awfully dreadful, wouldn't it?" He sighed, looking away as he frowned. "Leave, Hidan. I want to be alone with my thoughts."

"Of course, sir." Hidan nodded to him, smirking, before turning and walking out, closing the door. The man sighed then, running fingers through his blonde hair.

"Naruto…" He mumbled, closing his eyes. He then smirked. "How are you fairing?"

* * *

Naruto skipped first, second, and third period with Sasuke, the two of them walking outside in the back in quiet, their clasped hands the only thing connecting the two. Sasuke was looking down at the ground in contemplation, Naruto towards the sky as they both just thought to themselves about the things that were going on around them. Sasuke shivered a little, rubbing his arm with his free hand, and Naruto squeezed his hand in an assuring gesture. Sasuke let a tiny smile slip onto his lips, before he sighed softly, stopping by the large tree in the back of the school. He placed his hand on the trunk, looking at the bark and felt Naruto walk up behind him, wrapping his arms around his waist and leaning his chin on his shoulder.

"What are you thinking about?" The blonde asked, looking at the trunk with a blank look.

"How life keeps shitting on me." Sasuke mumbled, looking back at Naruto. "You?"

Naruto laughed lightly, closing his eyes. "Same."

* * *

_He was walking down some pathways quietly, looking around in confusion. It was his first time in Venice, first time out of the comforts of his city actually, and so Naruto was scared. Kakashi, being Kakashi had told Naruto to behave and then the silver haired pervert had gone off to look at Italian porn, leaving the boy off to his own devices._

_Sighing softly, the young thirteen year old swiped his shaggy blonde hair from his eyes, blindly turning into an alleyway. He looked up when he heard a yell, though, and saw a runner coming towards him, the guy looking at him with horror. Naruto's eyes widened and his body seemed to freeze. He thought that at that moment, he would get run over._

_But the runner caught his thoughts and skidded to a quick stop, stumbling before he stopped completely. Naruto fell to the ground in shock, looking at the legs of the runner as the driver got off. The man walked over to him, kneeling in front of him and waving a hand in front of his face. "__Ciao? Siete tutto il di destra?"_

"_What?" Naruto muttered, placing a hand on his forehead as he looked at the strange man before him. The man laughed, holding a hand out to Naruto, helping him up; silver hair shone in the sunlight, kind brown eyes looking at him in laughter. _

"_Sorry, I didn't know if you spoke Italian or not," he replied. He was a young man, probably mid or late teens, and fairly handsome. He had a nice smile, too, Naruto noted absentmindedly… "Are you all right?"_

"_Uh? …Yeah, I'm fine, no damage done." He stood up shakily with the help of the young man, looking around to see a few random passerby in the ally staring at him worriedly. He smiled a little, waving to them and they all smiled and waved back, walking off._

"_I'm glad you're alright then," the man said, brushing off his shoulder before stepping back. "My name is Hidan Morte. And you are…?" _

"_Naruto Uzumaki." He replied softly, looking over at him shyly. Hidan smiled at him scratching the back of his neck before he snapped. _

"_As an apology for almost running you over, want me to take you to a nice café that's just a few minutes from here? I'll help you find your way back to wherever you need to be, since you seem to be a tourist." He offered, grinning. "How's that sound to you?" _

_Naruto stood there awkwardly, before he smiled and nodded. "All right."

* * *

_Naruto blinked, shaking his head as he looked up to see Ms. Mansfield looking at him worriedly. "Naruto, are you alright?"

"Eh…? Yeah…I'm good." Naruto replied absentmindedly, standing up and grabbing his bag as he saw the classroom was empty; he must've dozed off again. "I'll see you later, Ms. Mansfield?"

"Mm…Yes." The woman nodded, frowning as Naruto grinned and waved to him before he walked off. She sighed, shaking her head, before she went to her desk to grade papers.

Naruto sighed a little as he walked to his last class, looking down at the floor. It made no sense to him. Why were these memories suddenly resurfacing after four years of leaving his mind be? He thought that Kyuubi had locked them all away so that his mind wouldn't hurt anymore and he wouldn't suffer nightmares every night…

Another confusing thing was how Kyuubi had been oddly silent the past few days. He hadn't been whispering into Naruto's ear the yearning to spill blood, nor was he moaning about Shukaku, the idiot demon inside of Gaara. It was odd, because Kyuubi loved to complain about Shukaku, and Naruto would laugh and tell Gaara about it, who would also laugh, the demon inside of him boiling up inside, angered. It worried Naruto, how quiet he had been. Sure, it was annoying how much he yammered day in and day out, but one grows kind of…fond of it, you could say. He kind of grew to enjoy Kyuubi's oddly comforting company.

He sighed, shaking his head and walked out of the school, walking up the stairs of the fire escape to the roof. He sat down quietly, rifling through his bag for a moment before he pulled out a small bottle. Looking at the Japanese label, he sighed, closing his eyes. "Tsunade will be so pissed off when she realizes I broke into her stash again…" He muttered, popping open the cap and taking a swig of the sake. He then rifled through his bag again, grabbing the manila packet from before and opened it, setting it on his lap.

"Now I should get into this. I have my sake and complete solitude, so I think I'll be set." He grinned, flipping open the folder. "Let's see your health, love…"

* * *

Sasuke watched the health video with a blank gaze, a frown set on his lips as the monotone of the speaker filled his ears. He glanced around briefly to see half the class asleep, and in the back he saw Hayate coughing quietly into his fist, tired eyes looking at the screen before he fumbled with something in his pocket. He pulled out a bottle then, popping out two pills and dry swallowed them, gulping twice before he twisted the cap back on, shoving it back into his pocket. He crossed his arms, and continued to watch the movie, but not before glancing at Sasuke with a raised eyebrow, almost curious.

Sasuke turned back around, looking at the screen with a slight frown. He had noticed a pattern over the past few sleepless nights about the school's faculty.

Asuma, Kurenai, Jiraiya, Kakashi, Anko, Hayate, Genma, Yugao, Iruka, Sasori…They all had some sort of past connection to Tsunade, it seemed. And half seemed to have been connected to some sort of gang.

He frowned a little. Was Tsunade just taking in the delinquents that no one wanted to teach in their schools, and let said delinquents teach impressionable students?

…Impressive.

* * *

Kakashi had skipped out on his final class, leaving it up to Kurenai to sub for him as he went to the hospital to visit Iruka.

Sighing quietly, he walked down the silent halls, feet shuffling almost blaringly loud from the lack of noise. No screams, no cries; just silence. It was kind of eerie in a way, as he thought about it, dark eye looking around with a frown under his mask. How could Iruka stand such silence?

When he reached his lover's door, he opened it and stepped in to see Iruka muttering to himself, patting around the bed as if looking for something. It was then that Kakashi understood why Iruka Umino could stand the quiet.

He was filled with noise.

Walking over to the Home Economics teacher quietly, Kakashi pulled up a chair and watched as Iruka glanced at him briefly, his dark eyes glazed over, his mind not there. He then turned away, and started to mutter to himself again nonsense words, and continued to pat around the bed. "What are you looking for, Iruka?"

"…My watch…Where's my watch…" Kakashi smiled slightly as he heard Iruka, shaking his head quietly. Back at home, when Iruka had still lived with them and had been in charge of Naruto, the Umino had always misplaced his watch somewhere, and was always looking for it. Naruto would always end up finding it in the end and Iruka would thank him, hurriedly going off to where he always did.

But there was no Naruto with them to help Iruka find his watch.

"Naruto, have you seen my…? Oh, Kakashi, move away, I'm looking for my watch. Go back to that shameless porn of yours…" Kakashi sighed sadly as he saw Iruka slam his hands against the bed, squeezing his eyes shut tightly, mouth twisted. His eyes snapped open and he looked at Kakashi again with clear eyes.

"Kakashi…" He whispered; his voice was hoarse, almost in pain. "Kakashi, I…" His eyes then glazed over again, and he went back to patting around his bed. Kakashi stared at him from a long time, before he got up, and hurried out of the room to the nurses' station.

* * *

"What the fuck?!"

Naruto spat out his sake, his eyes wide as he stared at the sheet in front of him, holding it with shaky hands. He dropped the paper back into his lap, taking a big gulp of the sake and running his hand through his hair. "My god…" He muttered, screwing his eyes shut. "My freaking god this can't be happening…Not my Sasuke…" He shook his head, denying it, before he took a deep, steady breath through his nose, slowly out his mouth and looked back at the cursed health documents in his lap.

Sasuke…Sasuke was screwed up…

The sake bottle crashed to the ground, liquid exploding as Naruto gripped at his hair tightly, and eyes wide.

Why his Sasuke…?

* * *

There was heavy coughing, and then the sound of something wet landing on the floor as the nurses rushed to the room, slamming the door opened. Three nurses walked over to the fallen patient, helping them sit up while the visitor had gone over to the floor, looking at it with wide, terrified eyes, gazing down at a puddle of blood.

They turned over with pale eyes, long dark hair falling into her face as she stared at her sister shaking uncontrollably in her bed, gripping the sheets with white knuckles as blood dribbled down the corner of her mouth. "She's having some sort of attack. Did she by any chance catch a cold or something?" One of the nurses asked, checking Hinata's temperature as she tried to calm her. "Damn it, we need to get her into a sterilized room."

The nurse turned over to the young girl, placing her hands on her shoulders. "I'm sorry, Hanabi dear, but we need to move Hinata to an Isolation Room. She's gotten sick while she's on a heavy dosage of chemotherapy and we need to help her get through this. She won't be able to have visitors for a while."

"I thought she was coming home in a month, though!" The young girl said, eyes flaring in sudden anger. "Why is she still on chemotherapy?"

"Something happened and we need to keep her in for a bit. But she'll be able to go home for an extended visit, maybe even attend school for a little while. We're not sure." The nurse looked over to the other two and nodded, and they wheeled Hinata's bed out into the hall, one nurse pushing the bed, the other nurse trailing with her IV pack. "Just…right now we need to take care of your sister, all right?" The nurse smiled at her comfortingly, before she rushed out of the room, barking orders to a janitor to clean up the blood spill in the room Hinata had just been in. Hanabi fell to her knees, eyes wide as she stared at the white tiled floor, her entire face having gone ghost white.

Hinata was supposed to be getting better…She closed her eyes tightly.

What was she going to tell Neji-niisan?


	5. Thunder and Lightening

A/N:..._(steps out onto dusty floor, kicks at passing tumble weed) _...Greetings from the planet Ureptinum. Eheh. Anyhow! So, I guess this has been my longest delayed update in...Recorded HISTORY! Erk. I've been limited on my computer time; four hours a DAY. Excuse me as I die a little inside, alright? If any of you have a pheonix down, toss it my way. I may need them. _(sigh)_ Anyhow! I didn't send this in to my new and wonderful beta for one reason only; lack of time. So back to my raw writing! Though I did take the advice of a reviewer for another story, and checked for spelling errors in my sections. I glanced, mind you, so there will probably still be a bunch. I think I'll survive though, right? Anyhow, I can't make this too long, seeing as I'm actually over my four hours now. T.T Makes meh sad. So...I'll see you all in chapter six! I'll try to get that up really soon. Eheh.

Disclaimer: Naruto and Co. belong to Masashi Kishimoto.

* * *

Shikamaru was in World History when there came a knock at the door. Blinking, he looked over to see Naruto glaring pointedly at him, and he sighed tiredly; already knowing what had gotten him so uptight. "Teacher," he called out, and the teacher looked over at him, raising an eyebrow. "Might I be excused from the rest of class? I'm feeling unwell."

"Of course, Shikamaru. Just come early tomorrow to get what you missed on today's lesson."

"Yeah, yeah..." Shikamaru shrugged, grabbing his books and his bag and walked out of the room, closing the door behind him. He started down the hallway, ignoring Naruto who walked next to him until he turned a corner into a vacant hallway with the classrooms being unused, before turning to Naruto. "You read the records then." He sighed as he saw Naruto nod, dropping his bag noisily on the ground and sitting down next to it, legs folded up in front of him as he draped his arms over his knees, looking at the ground. "Sit down then; you probably want to start talking about it."

"Stop being so damn smart," Naruto muttered, sitting down Indian style in front of him, looking at him carefully. "...How long have you actually had those files?"

"Last year, before Itachi was killed." Shikamaru stated, looking at him. "I didn't want to give them to you, since you would've reacted more violently then than you are now." He sighed, closing his eyes and leaning his head back against the lockers. "What did you read so far?"

"His lungs, liver...Kidneys..."

"Have you even reached the heart?"

"What's wrong with his heart?" Shikamaru opened his eyes, glancing at him before looking to the side.

"The kid's messed up, Naruto; I'm surprised he hasn't suffered brain damage. Unless second personality counts."

"What's wrong with his heart?" Naruto repeated, his voice tight and controlled; Shikamaru knew he was holding back bashing the Nara's head into the wall repeatedly. He sighed tiredly, lacing his fingers together as he thought, eyes closed. How could he tell him this...? Vaguely? ...Yeah, that sounded like a good plan.

"It's messed up somehow as well; I don't want to go into detail, since it's not as bad as something like his lungs." He frowned a little. "This confuses me, since he's so good at sports..."

"Shikamaru..."

"Naruto, I'm not the one to tell you. The one to tell you is Sasuke himself." Shikamaru stood up, grabbing his bag again. "I'm going up on the roof, alright? I need to find some information on Sasori." He then nodded, waving, before he walked down the hall and left the school. Naruto sat there for a long time, scowling before he forced himself up to his feet, walking down to the Tech wing where Sasuke's Health class was.

Might as well wait for the guy, right?

* * *

The nurses followed the shaking English teacher as he explained the short spout of consciousness that Iruka had shown; the first one to ever happen since his condition had fallen. They walked over to the quietly talking man, one checking his heart rate while another was looking into his eyes, holding his chin carefully and still so they could gaze into the faded brown depths. They both pulled away, one crossing her arms as she thought while the other tapped her arm with her hand lightly, knowing at her bottom lip.

"Well...?"

"His heat rate did speed up about twenty minutes ago; around the time you said he seemed to come back to now. How do his eyes look?"

"A little less fogged." She replied, sighing softly as she closed her eyes, running hands through short brown hair. "We'll keep a watch on him tonight; but for now, I think maybe we should leave Mr Umino alone, hmm?" She smiled, looking to the other nurse and then Kakashi. The silver haired man looked at her carefully, before he nodded, and they all left them room, bidding Kakashi a good day. He said the same, waving to them, before he left the hospital. He stopped by his car, though, looking at the white building quietly; wondering how Iruka was doing now.

He then got into his car, putting the key into the ignition and starting the car, putting it in drive before he drove out of his parking space, onto the highway back towards his end of the city, where he knew Naruto would be coming home soon enough.

He tapped his hand against the wheel to the song he was listening to, not really hearing the words but knowing some male was singing something. It was a catchy song, nonetheless, but he just didn't have the patience to listen to it today. He turned into the slums of the city after a few more minutes of driving, turning in the narrow streets carefully before he drove into his driveway, putting the car into park and turning it off, cutting the song off.

He got out of the car just as a crash of thunder went off and he blinked, looking up at the clouds, seeing the dark, foreboding gray puffs of clouds that had appeared from out of nowhere, before he winced as a raindrop hit the free patch of skin on his face. This was followed by another, and then another before it started to pour. He closed the car door, standing out in the driveway before he pulled the bandage off, revealing his scarred eye, both eyes closed as he slipped his mask down to his neck, lifting his face to the rain.

"...Rin always did like the rain..." He mumbled softly; soft lips barely moving. "It's why Naruto loves it..." He laughed. "Or maybe that's because Arashi loved the rain..."

He shook his head, already soaked silver hair falling into his face as he walked to the door and unlocked it, walking inside and peeling off his wet clothes in the foyer. "I guess I'll need to take a shower..." He mumbled, frowning a little.

"I've always hated the rain."

* * *

The bell rang and Sasuke sighed, stretching his arms over his head before he got up along with the other students who had been roused from slumber by the obnoxious bell, walking out in the horde of people with one last glance to Hayate, who only nodded to him quietly, turning to the papers on his desk from another class. Sasuke then turned, walking out to see Naruto leaning against the wall, looking peaceful and oblivious; thought Sasuke knew that it was the opposite. He looked at him for a long time, locking the picture away into his memory before he walked over to him, kneeling in front of him and placed a hand on his knee. Naruto moved the hand from resting on his thigh to hold Sasuke's paler hand gently, a smile on his lips. "Hey,"

"Waiting for me, were you?" Sasuke asked, helping the blonde up to his feet as Naruto opened his eyes, grabbing his pack as the dark boy dragged him to his feet. He nodded, and Sasuke smirked, rolling his eyes and shaking his head. "It's raining now."

"Then Shikamaru better pray he didn't get caught in the rain with his laptop." Naruto muttered, rolling his eyes. Sasuke looked at him curiously, and Naruto smirked, shaking his head. "It's nothing, Sasuke; no worries."

"Alright..." The Uchiha shrugged, lacing his fingers with the Uzumaki's as they started to walk down the halls, moving his bag on his shoulder more comfortably before he sighed and fell silent. Naruto looked at him quietly, biting the inside of his cheek. He wanted to know what had happened to Sasuke to give him such a...Impressive medical file, but he was still a little shaky from Kabuto; he could tell by just how quiet he was and how tensed his hand was in his own. To mention anything doing with medicine would probably throw him off and he might have a fit or something; Sasuke was prone to having fits lately, seeing as how his memories had been turned from 'Memory Attacks' to 'Memory Fits'. They weren't full blown memories anymore that he got all at once. They were more bits and pieces of events that had happened to him; mostly unpleasant due to the sort of environment he had lived in back when he was smaller. Already he leaned about what most of his relationship with Orochimaru was; painful, untrusting, and distant at best, if not grossed out and cruel.

Other memories were his times in rehab; the different events that caused him to be put into a room alone, banned from having any roommates. Sasuke still didn't know what he did, but it was to that girl who was his first roommate...He said he saw brief flashes like cliché flashbacks in movies; blinks of memories of a scream, the sound of something tearing, and then something that went by so fast he couldn't even see what it was. Just that it had writing on it.

They walked out of the school into the rain, Naruto glaring up at the sky briefly before he sighed and pulled his jacket out of his backpack where he had shoved it earlier, throwing it over Sasuke to keep him as dry as possible. "Come on, we're going to my place; it's closer."

"Mm,"

* * *

Kakashi just walked out of his room fully clothes and drying his hair off when he heard the door open and two pairs of feet walk in, two voices muttering to each other. He smiled a little, face still revealed before he threw his towel into the laundry hamper in the hall, walking down the stairs to see Naruto fussing about Sasuke who was pushing his hands away, trying to tell him he was _fine_. The guardian laughed at the sight, causing the two boys to look up at him, Naruto grinning a little embarrassedly and Sasuke flushing. "Sasuke, why don't you come upstairs and get some dry clothes from Naruto's room? I'm sure there's something there that'll fit your tiny self."

"Thanks, Kakashi." Sasuke muttered, frowning a little as he slipped off his shoes and hurried up the stairs, slamming the door to Naruto's room after he had reached it. Guardian and charge looked at each other for a moment, before Naruto grinned, placing his hands behind his head. "New clothes; get caught in the rain?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. "Kinda funny how that could've happened...Since you were driving and all."

"I got home when it started...Stopped to think for a moment. I guess it was for too long, if I got soaked so quickly."

"It's pouring out there; I think the weather man said something about a hurricane coming our way or something."

"What a time to live near the water. I thought hurricane season was done." Kakashi muttered, frowning as he crossed his arms.

"Apparently this one wants to be a freak and attack out lovely city with its wetness." The blonde rolled his eyes, sighing. "Hopefully nothing gets flooded like two summers ago."

"That would be agony." They both fell silent as Naruto's door was opened and Sasuke came padding back out in black sweatpants still slipping on his hips, but tied as tightly as possible, and an oversized blue T-shirt slipping over one of his shoulders; his feet bare.

"...I feel like I'm going to bed." He muttered, looking to the side as Naruto grinned up at him.

"He looks swallowed!" The Uzumaki finally exclaimed, causing a blush to come across Sasuke's pale cheeks and a soft laugh to emit from Kakashi.

"I'll go start dinner; macaroni and cheese?" He asked, looking to the two boys. Sasuke shrugged, nodding and Naruto grinned. "I know you're answer, looser," Kakashi muttered, smirking as he walked by the blonde, pushing his head playfully before he walked into the kitchen leaving the boys alone. Naruto watched him leave, before looking up at Sasuke, who stood there awkwardly feeling smaller than usual as Naruto walked up the stairs and stepped up to him. He looked up at him with an eyebrow raised as he saw him touch his cheek, leaning forward and kissing his forehead softly.

"No sudden hugging?" Sasuke asked suspiciously. Naruto grinned cheekily then, shrugging as he stepped back, walking towards his room.

"I'm wet, duh!"

Sasuke smirked, shaking his head as the door was closed, before he walked down the stairs to go see if he could help Kakashi.

* * *

Hidan sat in front of a computer, clicking around in a website when a presence came up behind him. He frowned a little, turning his head a bit to gaze at his partner, raising a silver brow curiously. "Yes Kakuzu?" He asked quietly.

The man was tall—almost as tall as Kisame—and he had bright yellow eyes. He was pale, and he wore a headdress that hid the rest of his face and his hair colour, his eyes contacts because the whites of his eyes were blackened. He wore a black trench coat with dark pants and boots, gloves on his hands and a turtleneck the shade of gray covered any ski he might've left. The only way you could tell he was a pale man was by the limited amount of skin he didn't hide on his face; the reason for his hiding his entire body from view was still a mystery to half of Akatsuki.

"You spoke to Leader,"

"Yeah, a day ago," Hidan rolled his eyes, and turning to look at the man, looking at him curiously, but annoyed all the same. "I didn't know you listened to anything that didn't deal with cold hard cash."

"I do listen to what's going on in my surroundings; if I don't, I could very well end up like Sharingan."

"He was killed by Manda, not because he was oblivious." Hidan muttered, rolling his eyes. "You idiot." He sighed, turning away from him. "Why do you care if I spoke to Leader or not?"

"It was the topic of conversation." Kakuzu muttered, walking up behind him. He placed a hand on the computer desk next to Hidan, leaning in towards him so he could speak in his ear. "Naruto Uzumaki; the kid you're obsessed with. Drop it already, Hidan. You know you won't be able to watch him die. And you know as well as I do that you could never harm the kid." He looked at him with those blinding yellow eyes. "You still love him."

"Shut up, Kakuzu; you don't understand why I'm doing this." Hidan muttered eyes narrowed as he clicked onto a sight. "Though I don't want to see it, I have to; he can't live with that thing manifesting inside of him."

"That's not your problem." Kakuzu stated, pulling back to give the religious man his space. Hidan glared at him heatedly.

"It _became_ my problem when I _joined_ this fucking gang, didn't it?" He hissed simply, before pulling back from the computer, standing up. "It's because of that thing that he's the leader of the most influential and powerful gang in this city; it has spies everywhere. I bet there are spies in this very gang. Do I give a shit about that? No. I give a shit about the fact that thing is going to take over him if it continues to grow!" He narrowed his eyes. "Those guys screwed him over when the underground Organization ROOT still existed. ANBU didn't help too much, either. Both of them fucked him over. And I don't want to see him fall." Hidan turned away from him, shoving his hands into his pockets as he started to walk away.

"That's why I'm doing this." He whispered, looking down at the ground. "If that makes me sound soft, whatever; I know he can never forgive me anyhow."

He then walked out of the room, leaving the gambler behind to ponder over his words and twist them so that they made sense in his corrupted mind.

* * *

Neji walked into the Hyuuga Complex quietly, sliding the door closed as he squeezed the water out of his hair in the front foyer where he could, slipping out of his sneakers quietly before he looked up to see Hanabi standing by the staircase, looking at him quietly. "Hanabi-san; are you alright?"

"Neji-niisan...its Oneechan." Hanabi whispered, looking at him with sad, almost hesitant pale eyes. "She...She got sick while she was on chemotherapy and now she might not be able to come home next month for good!" She quickly said, before she bit her bottom lip, looking away from him. Neji's eyes widened before they dulled and he walked over to Hanabi quietly, uncaring that he was still wet, and wrapped his arms around his young cousin. Hanabi gripped the wet fabric of his shirt, crying into it and adding to the collective water soaked in there already. But he didn't care.

"It'll be alright, Hanabi-san..." He whispered quietly, rubbing her back soothingly. "...She'll make it. Hinata-san is strong..." He lowered his head, eyes closed as he swallowed, trying to moisten his suddenly dry throat.

"...She'll...She'll be alright..."

* * *

Sakura and Ino walked into the apartment peeling off their clothes as Sakura kicked the door closed behind her, locking it before the two of them threw their clothes into the hamper, walking to their respective rooms and getting dressed.

While pulling on a shirt, Sakura's phone suddenly rang from the pillow where she had thrown it. She struggled with his shirt for a moment, before tossing it onto the floor, giving up for the time being and grabbed her phone, flipping it open. "Hello?"

'Sakura,'

"Neji! What's up, hun? You sound kind of...Uhh...Iffy." She frowned a little in worry at the thought, wondering what was wrong that would make it sound like he was holding back tears; though Sakura didn't say that since she knew her boyfriend was a proud man. Though...Not really a man, since he was just 16.

'...It's Hinata. She's...not feeling so well anymore.' Neji said softly, not commenting that she had said he sounded iffy. Usually he'd tell her he was fine; that must've meant it was really serious. And apparently, it was.

"What happened?"

'They apparently put her on a stronger dose of chemotherapy, because something had happened to her during a check-up or something. She must've caught a cold from a visitor while that happened...'

"That sounds like what happened to Iruka-sensei..." Sakura mumbled, frowning. "But...He's just out of it now..." She licked her bottom lip, before twirling a piece of hair and sighing. "How bad is it?"

'She's in an Isolation Room, getting treated. The doctors told Hanabi she wouldn't be able to stay home...But she might be able to get a visit.' Neji sighed tiredly, eyes closed. 'Things are not working for me, Sakura...Things aren't going well...'

"I know baby..." Sakura frowned, curling up on her bed. "I know..."

* * *

Sasuke finished off his mac 'n' cheese before he put his dishes into the sink, rinsing them quickly. He looked out the window while he was by the sink, frowning a little as he cocked his head to the side. "The rain isn't letting up...I might just be stuck here." He muttered, before looking at Kakashi. "Unless you want to drive me."

"Sorry, not crazy enough. Naruto is, but he doesn't have a driver's licence."

"Not my fault; the instructor was an idiot."

"She freaked because he almost ran over a real pedestrian." Kakashi pointed out blankly. "She had a right to fail you."

"People always almost run over pedestrians! I am a prime example of almost getting killed multiple times."

"Ah, but Naruto," Sasuke cut in, Kakashi grinning as he felt an insult or something akin to it coming up. "They do not do that on accident."

"What are you saying Sasuke?" Naruto asked with a forced grin, speaking through clenched teeth.

"They aim."

"That's it!" Naruto stood up, knocking his chair back before he started to walk towards Sasuke, the Uchiha slowly backing away from him towards the door with that same infuriating smirk on his lips. "You're gonna get it now."

"Catch me first." He then bolted from the kitchen, and the two of them heard him skip most of the stairs in his run to the upper floor. Naruto swore, smirking as he ran after him, hearing the door slam.

"Sasuke get out of my room!"

Kakashi laughed as Naruto bolted up the stairs, before he picked up both their remaining plates, putting them into the sink with Sasuke's before looking at the rain himself. It was really coming down outside...He frowned, narrowing his eyes a little. "Strange weather we're having..." He mumbled, turning away. "Hm."

* * *

"Come on, Sasuke, lemme in!"

"Now why would I do that?" Sasuke asked from the other side of the door, leaning on it with the help of the dresser he had moved. Yes, he was being childish but dammit! He didn't get to act like this after everything. "You'd hurt me."

"Would I?" Naruto's muffled voice asked, and Sasuke could hear the door creaking as he pushed against it; right, the blonde was stronger...Curses. "Come on, how long have you known me?"

"A year, three days ago." Sasuke responded smartly back. "I didn't like you then, remember? Sometimes I wonder why I do."

"I'm just that loveable." Sasuke rolled his eyes at the cocky answer, before stepping away from the door, hiding into the walk-in closet. Naruto smirked, pushing against the door and it slid open. He looked to see the dresser, but no Sasuke and frowned. "Sasuke?" He called, looking around his dark room. He shuddered a little; why didn't his little bat turn on the lights? "Come on, Sasuke; I give up. I'm not gonna hurt ya or anything. Just come out..."

He walked by the closet, and Sasuke's hand snaked out, grabbing the back of his shirt before pulling him in and closing the door; the blonde yelping as he fell into darkness. Sasuke then flicked on the light switch, looking at him with a smirk. "I win then?"

"Yeah, yeah..." Naruto rolled his eyes, smirking at the Uchiha as he sat on a plastic box that held all of Naruto's precious childhood items; was that Snuffles? His teddy turtle? The blonde shook his head, looking at the raven as he leaned against the wall, arms crossed over his chest as he held that smug smirk on his lips. "Shut up,"

"I didn't say anything, though." Sasuke countered, smirking at him. "How could I shut up?" He asked, cocking his head to the side.

"Easily," Naruto replied, placing his hands on the wall behind him on either side of him, leaning forward. "In fact, I can help."

"I'd like to see you try." Sasuke muttered, leaning his head back as he looked at him with a challenging look. Naruto grinned; brushing his lips over the Uchiha's briefly, moving his right hand to thread through his hair.

"Gladly," And then he pressed is lips against Sasuke's, the dark boy pressing back as soon as he felt the contact.

Kakashi walked into the room at that giving moment, not making a noise before he walked to the closet, which had foolishly been left opened. He grinned, holding up his camera, which he had turned off sound and flash on, before he took a quick one, running away before the two realized what he was doing.

"Sakura and Ino will pay serious money for this." Kakashi muttered, grinning a little. "I'm gonna be rich..."

* * *

Gaara sat in the bedroom quietly, legs folded up to his chest and chin resting on his knees when he heard the door open, and he looked over to see Temari looking at him with a tired smile. "Hey there," she greeted, walking over to her youngest brother and sitting next to him, leaning her head on his shoulder. He blinked, looking at her quietly, before he turned from her, making a small noise of recognition.

"How's Bijuu doing without me?"

"They miss you." He mumbled, finally speaking for the first time that night. The blonde nodded, yawning behind her hand.

"I miss them...Too," she yawned before she said 'too', smiling sleepily. "Sasuke and Naruto still going strong?"

"Sickeningly so." Gaara rolled his green eyes, and Temari laughed at the rare show of emotion, before she squeezed his arm affectionately. "Have Tayuya, Ukon and Sakon find a place to live yet?"

"Nope; they're still crashing in our basement." She sighed, shrugging a little. "Kimimaro is making some improvement, though; he's reacting to things when people talk to him." She grinned, closing her eyes. "He's definitely getting better..."

Gaara looked at her as she slowly fell asleep, before he moved her carefully to lie on his bed, pulling the covers over her as he moved away from her to his window seat. He sat down, looking up at the moon before a tiny smile flittered across his face, and then just as quickly as it appeared it disappeared.

"That's good."

* * *

_"So what kind of things do you like to do, Naruto?" Hidan asked as he walked the young boy down the streets of Venice, nodding to some people as he knew that greeted him. The blonde thought about it for a moment, before he grinned and shrugged a little. "What's that supposed to mean?" _

_"I like to do different sort of things. I like reading." He said, looking at him. "And I like the rain...But that's not something to do, that's just something I like." He thought for a moment, smirking. "I like beating Obito in Go; he sucks at that." _

_"Who's Obito?" _

_"He's my caretaker; he was a friend of my father's before he died." Naruto's smile turned a little sadder, and Hidan looked at him in sympathy, before placing a hand on his head, ruffling up his hair. "Hey!" _

_"I know how it feels to loose someone important." He spoke, ignoring his indignant shout. "So you don't have to talk about that if you don't want to." _

_Naruto looked at him, blinking before he smiled and nodded. "Alright." _

_"So, reading?" _

* * *

Naruto's eyes opened as he looked over to his window to see the rain still pouring down. He sighed, looking down at the sleeping boy next to him, before he rubbed his back, yawning behind his head. "Why am I dreaming about him...?" Naruto mumbled, sitting up as he shifted so Sasuke could lie on the pillow as Naruto went down to the kitchen. "It doesn't make sense..."

He sighed, padding out of his room carefully and peeking out into the hallway to see the nightlight on, like Kakashi turned on every night for him in case he got hungry. He walked down the stairs slowly, and entered the kitchen to see Kakashi sitting there drinking a glass of red wine. He glanced up at him, holding up his glass in silent offering, and Naruto nodded, sitting at his seat as he sighed, folding his arms on the table and laying his head on them. "Bad dreams?" Kakashi asked, placing down a glass of wine for him. Naruto took the glass, sniffing the liquid before he took a sip, closing his eyes.

"Sorta; I'm remembering him." Naruto shrugged, opening his eyes and looking at his guardian carefully; emotions hidden in his darkened blue eyes. "I...Don't really know why, either. I only did that when he was around...And something bad was happening." He frowned. "But I left him in Venice a long time ago."

"You don't know all of Akatsuki's members, do you?" Kakashi asked, looking at him indifferently. Naruto blinked, looking at him in confusion.

"Not...Really..."

"...Leader, Sharingan, Shark, Bomber, Red Dessert, Cannibal, Gambler, Floral, Anonymous and Reaper." Kakashi listed off as if reading from a text book. "Sharingan is dead, Shark is now a spy and Red Dessert deserted. That leaves Leader, Cannibal, Gambler, Floral, Anonymous and Reaper." He looked at him with a frown.

"...Reaper is Hidan."


	6. Remembering

A/N: OH EM GEE AN UPDATE?! Wow it's a miracle. XD Anyhow, so this one was fast in coming; I am impressed with myself I must say. Sorry it's shorter, though; all important stuff was said.

Disclaimer: Naruto and Co. belong to Masashi Kishimoto.

* * *

Naruto stared at Kakashi for a long while, just looking at him with wide eyes, his mouth slightly opened. Finally, after about fifteen minutes, he reacted.

"_**HIDAN IS REAPER?!**_" He seemed to screech, jumping to his feet and slamming his hands against the table, looking at him with wide, petrified eyes. His wine glass jumped from the table and spilt to the floor, shattering like the sake bottle had that afternoon on the roof before the intolerable rain had started. Kakashi blinked, looking down at the glass and the red liquid spilling onto his floor, before glancing at Naruto again.

"Clean that up, if you would." He said simply, blankly. Naruto blinked, staring at him unbelievingly for a moment before he sat back down with a _thud_. "...Are you going to?"

"Later," he muttered, waving the chore to the side. "Now...How the hell do you know Hidan is Reaper?" He asked, looking at him with curious, but narrowed eyes. Kakashi shrugged a shoulder, finishing his wine and filling it up again. "Kakashi..."

"Kisame told me, stupid." He replied, staring at him blankly. Naruto coughed into his fist awkwardly, and Kakashi just shook his head sipping his wine again. "Anything else stupid you'd like to say?"

"...When is Kisame coming to one of our meetings?"

"It's been two days since he became a spy, Naruto. He's going to have to lay low for a bit until he figures out an excuse to get away from Akatsuki. He lives in their headquarters, you know." The English teacher stated, staring at him. "They're fairly watchful of members that live in the headquarters. They didn't watch Itachi since he lived outside with his little brother, but their leader did come by and talk to him at points."

"...You know everything."

"No. Just most things." Kakashi grinned. "Now clean up your mess."

* * *

Sasuke stirred, eyes slowly opening to see that he was alone in Naruto's bed, and that the sun was peeking out into the window softly. He groaned as the rays of light hits him in the eyes, and he squeezed the dark orbs shut, curling onto his side away from the sun and burying his face into Naruto's pillow, surrounding himself in the scent that was his blonde. He heard the door creak open, and looked blearily up to see Naruto walking in, trying not to wake him up. "I'm already up, dobe."

"...Damn." Naruto muttered, grinning and turning over to him. "Thought I'd get in before you wake up, just so I could cuddle for a minute. My plan's been murdered."

"Yeah. Blame the sun." Sasuke sat up, yawning behind his hand as he looked around. "So why were you up, anyhow? Spending quality time with Kakashi?"

"Let's say that." Naruto grinned, walking over to him, sitting on the bed and flopping over his legs. "How'd you sleep?"

"Dreamlessly," he replied, shrugging as he shifted his legs so they wouldn't die of lack of circulation. "Did you even sleep?"

"For a bit; nightmares disturb slumber though."

"I know that, dobe."

"Forgive me, teme." Naruto rolled his eyes, grinning at Sasuke's glare before he pounced on him, cuddling into his side. "Do we have to go to school?" He whined, looking at him with a pout. Sasuke sighed, shoving his face away as he sat up, tugging away from Naruto. "Don't be so cold!"

"Yes we have to go to school, Naruto." Sasuke said, looking at him. "I want a shower."

"Can I join?"

"NO." Sasuke walked out, slamming the door behind him making Naruto wince. The blonde sighed, scratching the back of his head awkwardly.

"I was only kidding..."

* * *

Sasuke sighed, pressing his back against the bathroom door, eyes closed as he slowly took in deep breaths, letting them out equally slow. He knew that Naruto was only joking; he wouldn't actually offer that sort of thing. But still...He had lied when he said he slept dreamlessly. He had had a dream—a nightmare really—and it was making him edgy. Especially since it had dealt with Orochimaru again. He had thought his dreams and memories were done about him, but he supposed he must've been wrong about that. Just a short thing; interaction after that rainy night.

He sighed, running a hand down his face before he pulled off the T-shirt he had borrow, slipping out of the pants and his dried boxers before he turned on the shower, stepping under the warm water and soaking his hair. He heard the rain outside pouring down, water sloshing and he frowned a little; was it flooded out there? Would school even be opened then? If it was flooded, most likely the roads would be closed because of hazards. He sighed; grabbing the shampoo and rubbing it in his hands, scrubbing it into his dark hair before washing it out, grabbing conditioner after all the suds were out of his hair. He squeezed a dollop onto his calm, rubbing his hands together before scrubbing it through his hair again, washing it out. He turned the shower off; pushing the door opened and grabbed some towels on the counter, wrapping one around his waist and the other around his shoulders to dry his hair once he got to Naruto's room. He kicked his clothes to the basket, opening the door and walking to Naruto's room where Naruto sat, staring at the window as he listened to the radio.

"School's been cancelled." The blonde said, looking over at him with a slight smile. "It's flooded a foot overnight."

"That's strange," Sasuke muttered, frowning a little as he sat on the bed, drying his hair out. Naruto nodded, turning away from him as he turned off his radio, looking out the window again to see the rain pelting down against the glass. He then sighed, standing up and walking to the door, placing a hand on Sasuke's shoulder. The Uchiha looked up at him curiously, raising an eyebrow and Naruto smiled a little apologetically. "What?"

"Sorry," he said simply, bending down and pressing his lips against his neck before he left the room, closing the door calmly. Sasuke sat there for a moment, sighing, before he continued to dry off, rifling through Naruto's clothes for some clothes to wear for the day.

* * *

Sakura yawned as she woke up, rubbing her eyes as she walked out of her apartment in her housecoat, going down the elevator to the mailboxes on the main floor. She walked to hers, unlocking it and opening her cubby, grabbing the manila folders that Naruto and Shikamaru sent her, as well as a postcard from her parents and some other letters and fliers. She looked out the clear door of the foyer, frowning a little at the small lake outside. "Such strange weather we're having." Sakura mumbled, frowning a little before she shook her head and walked back to the elevator, pressing her floor and going up.

She rifled through the fliers, crumpling some of them and moving others under her other arm since they were for Ino, before she looked at the manila folders. "Medical files...And updated information. Sasuke's, I'm guessing..." She mumbled, smirking a little. "That's good."

She walked out of the elevator, going back into her apartment to see Ino walking out in her pajamas, yawning behind her hand. "Hungry girl?"

"A little," the blonde replied, looking at her with tired blue eyes. "What'cha got there?"

"A fashion magazine for you and our pay checks from the flower shop."

"Finally; Mama was taking her damned time wasn't she?" Sakura shook her head, smiling a little as she passed Ino her pay check and her fashion magazine. "And what do you have?"

"The rent and information on Sasuke." The pinkette replied, looking at her with her bright green eyes. She put her things on the kitchen table, walking into the kitchen. "What do you want for breakfast?"

"Aren't we going down to Sasuke's?" Ino asked, raising an eyebrow. Sakura shook her head, frowning a little. "Why not?"

"He never came home last night." She sighed, looking back at her. "Bacon and eggs? Or an English muffin with the works?"

"I shall take option B." Ino smiled, sitting at the kitchen table and looking at her happily. "Please don't burn it."

"Me? Burn something? Pshaw." Sakura grinned. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Let me remind you then; think just three days ago, the toast incident."

"Shut up! We agreed to forget that!"

"Ah, but the fireman was attractive, I must admit."

"Says the celibate!"

* * *

After a small burning incident that Sakura made Ino swear secrecy to, one could find the Haruno in her room, fully dressed and working over the profiles of the members yet again, updating Sasuke's rather large and impressive file of screw-ups. She sighed, going onto her computer as she opened the small file she had made of Sasuke's information overall, looking at his picture quietly for only a moment. She then scrolled down to his medical information, typing up the things listed in his files.

"What did this boy do to himself...?" She mumbled, frowning a little before she sighed, saving the document and closing it. She then put the newly acquired files into her filing cabinet, closing her computer and standing up, scratching the back of her head. "And I thought he was just...A little messed up..."

* * *

Kakashi was lounging on the couch when Sasuke and Naruto came down, talking quietly to each other about something or other. The silver haired teacher looked at them with a raised eyebrow, blinking a little. "What are you two talking about?"

"How we're going to kill you in your sleep." Naruto said in a heartbeat, looking at him completely serious. Kakashi stared at him, before he nodded and turned his attention back to the book that he was currently reading; for once it being something that wasn't restricted for kids younger than 18.

"Just make sure it isn't slitting my throat, alright? I'll sense you right away."

"We know; we were thinking cyanide pills mixed with your medication."

"Oh?" Kakashi smirked, looking back up at Naruto, Sasuke shaking his head and walking towards the kitchen for some food. "And what medication is this?"

"The medication that keeps you from going crazy. Duh." Naruto rolled his eyes, grinning as Kakashi laughed a little, shaking his head and closing his book, standing up. "What are you doing?"

"Going to make sure Sasuke doesn't accidentally burn the kitchen down." He stated, shrugging. Naruto rolled his eyes, walking over to the couch and flopping on top of it, looking at the book Kakashi was reading before reaching for the remote, turning the TV on. He blinked at the fuzz, though, and realized why Kakashi was reading _A Tale of Two Cities_© suddenly. Why would Kakashi read Dickens unless the TV wasn't working and he was done all of his Icha Icha Paradise books? Sure, the man was an English teacher and so has read many a book, but that didn't mean he liked half of them. _Lord of the Flies_© drove him nuts when he read it, and he had to read it with all the second years. Poor man, slowly going insane from reading about children going insane and killing each other either by rocks or eating half of them. No wonder Kakashi had to take his medication.

Meanwhile, in the kitchen Kakashi was looking at Sasuke as he stared back at him, the two promptly falling into a staring contest. An interesting fact was that whenever these two got into staring contests, it could last forever; especially whenever Sasuke summoned his sharingan and Kakashi summoned his _own_ sharingan. And the two only got into these heated staring contests when they got into the age-old argument of why the HELL Kakashi has a sharingan eye in the first place.

"You know I'll never tell you, right?" Kakashi stated, his red eye staring into both of Sasuke's, three tomoes staring into six. "It's not in my power to tell you; only—"

"—Itachi can tell me, I know." Sasuke muttered, frowning as his eyes faded back into dark blue, Kakashi's eye following. "But he's dead Kakashi, and I can't learn anything from a dead Aniki." Kakashi frowned and Sasuke looked to the side. "I should've...Worded that better."

"I know what you meant." Kakashi said, placing a hand on his head. "But Itachi can still tell you; you just have to force it." Sasuke looked at him in confusion, and Kakashi grinned. "Itachi left something behind; something that can tell you everything about why I have the sharingan and why you and Itachi had it; why Naruto has the Kyuubi and why Gaara has Shukaku. Something that can tell you about the Hyuugas, the Byakugen, and why Neji's father had cancer and why Hinata has it now; why Kimimaro Kaguya is in a coma and has always coughed up blood. Every single mystery in this entire gang scene; ROOT, ANBU, Akatsuki, even Gaara's old gang Shukaku." He smirked. "Still don't get it?"

"No, but I'm extremely intrigued."

"He left behind his computer. Sharingan Itachi Uchiha was the best hacker in the city, if not the province. He has found out everything, and it's one of the reasons the Leader of Akatsuki wanted him in the gang—but also wanted him dead." Kakashi pulled back, crossing his arms. "Because he was the best though, he's also the hardest to crack. Sakura could help you; she's the best at figuring out passwords."

"She hasn't figured out Shikamaru's passwords yet."

"He is the heir to Itachi after all. Shikamaru might've never told you, because you weren't supposed to know; while Itachi was a spy, he felt he was going to die young. So he taught Shikamaru everything he knew, and then some tricks for him to keep his computer safe. Shikamaru can never be cracked by an amateur like Sakura, so Itachi can't either. But she can teach you the basics; you have the intelligence of Itachi." Kakashi smiled a little. "You can be as great as him, if not better. But you have to figure out how to hack him, and you'll need help from Sakura, Shikamaru, and Itachi himself."

"But how can Aniki help me if he's—"

"Itachi has never truly left you, Sasuke. You remember what he was like; how he acted and how he would help. Just think like Itachi would think; let him help you however he can, even if he is gone. He's still vital to the groups of gangs; everyone wants in on his computer." Kakashi paused, staring at him. "And I mean _everyone_. You need to crack it and keep all the information, deleting every file before anyone else can. And with photographic memory...You're the only one who CAN do it." He paused, looking at him quietly. "Do you understand, Chidori?"

Sasuke blanched at his gang name before he frowned and nodded, turning to look out the window where the rain was pouring down, lightening flashing.

"I understand."

* * *

A young blonde sat on a mat on the ground of Akatsuki's underground gym, stretching before he jumped to his feet, swinging his arms around as he looked over beside him at his knew partner. Bomber Deidara Atsuo pushed back his long blonde hair from his slightly feminine face, staring at the dark haired boy beside him that was his new partner.

Ever since Sasori had left Akatsuki with the excuse of family problems, Deidara had been in need of a new partner; and the ragtag, oddball outsider Anonymous was the best choice because even though he acted like an idiot half the time, he was fairly powerful with fire tricks and fairly flexible. "Tobi!" The blonde called out Anonymous' real name, and the boy looked over at him.

Half of his face was covered by a strange orange mask, though he kept the other half revealed, showing a bright red eye staring at him in curiousity. "Have you been practicing with your fire lately? I know you've been slacking off to watch cartoons again."

"I've been practicing sempai." Tobi replied, pushing back spiky black hair. "I've been practicing with my torches a lot."

"Good; have you been practicing with anything else, un?"

"Well, as a circus performer and then a Busker, of course I've been practicing with other tools of fire." Tobi said, nodding as if agreeing with himself. Deidara sighed, shaking his head. "Something the matter, sempai?"

"Nah; I'm just thinking that somehow, I'm going to die un."

"I wouldn't let you die, sempai! And even if you did die, I'd avenge you! Since I'm a good boy."

"...Please don't start with that again Tobi."

"...Alright, sempai." Tobi looked away, before smiling and pulling out a small tool, flicking his thumb over it as it came alive in flame, before he started to toss it around in intricate patterns, tossing it over to Deidara who took a small bomb and threw it at the ball of fire. A small explosion erupted in front of them, Tobi smiling widely and Deidara smirking.

"Good work, un. Now go on the jogging machine for fifteen minutes."

"Hai!"

* * *

Neji stood in front of a window, looking inside at Hinata who was sleeping somewhat peacefully inside the isolation chamber, an oxygen mask over her mouth and nose feeding her pure, untainted oxygen. A hand was placed on his shoulder behind him and he jumped, looking over at Hiashi who had come to stand behind him. "I'm worried about her too."

"That's a first," Neji muttered, turning away from him. "You didn't even do anything when she first found out; you just let her do as she wanted, instead of immediately taking her to the hospital. Then perhaps she wouldn't have exerted herself and she wouldn't be in the condition she's in now." He looked coldly back at his uncle, and the man just stared at him, before he sighed; his face looking pallid and tired. "Do you have anything to say to that?"

"What else can I say Neji? I know you're right; I know, as her father, I should've made sure she was healthy. But she didn't want to worry her; you are her true guardian after all. It shames me to say it, but I barely know my eldest daughter; I focused all my attention on Hanabi, because she looks nothing like their mother...While Hinata looks exactly like her." He sighed, stepping back and folding his arms across his chest, standing in a business suit; he must've just come from work if he was still in his suit and not in a yukatas like he usually was. "Should I say I'm sorry?"

"It'd be a start, Hiashi-sama." Neji mumbled, turning away from him. "If you'll excuse me, I'm going home."

"It's still flooded."

"I walked here; I'll walk back. Good day."

* * *

Naruto looked out at the window, watching out of the corner of his eye as Sasuke sat in the corner of the room sketching away while Kakashi sat in the armchair reading _A Tale of Two Cities_ again, his eyes looking bored, but moving all the same. The blonde then sighed, looking back out the window, but this time he saw someone standing outside in the rain, in the two feet of water. His eyes widened as a flash of lightening struck, and silver hair was lightened before it fell into darkness again, and the figure walked away.

'...Hidan was just here...'

_**Well, are you going to do anything about it? Tell Kakashi, maybe?**_

'Why the hell would I do THAT, Kyuubi?'

_**Well, maybe Hidan's here to kill you, ya think?**_

'Extremely doubtful; Hidan might've gone psychotic the day I left, but that doesn't mean he'd be out for my head.'

_**He's a part of Akatsuki, though; and they want you and Sasuke dead, don't they? What if they knew Sasuke was here?**_

'Doubtful. Besides, Kakashi is here. He'd kill them in five seconds.'

_**He hasn't fought in a long time. **_

'Doesn't mean he's rusty.' Naruto sighed outwardly, closing his eyes. 'Just shut up, Kyuubi.'

_**Fine, fine...

* * *

**_Sasuke looked over at Naruto as he sighed, closing his eyes. 'Must be talking to Kyuubi...' Sasuke thought, frowning a little, before going back to his sketch, scratching in a line of the nose before sighing, taking his eraser and rubbing it out. 'Why can't I get it right?' He thought, getting frustrated. 'Why can't I...Remember...'


	7. Begins With

A/N: Oooh. Ahhh. SUSPENCE. And what's this? Is this...PLOT we see forming? And since we see plot, kiddies, guess what this means? I'm sorry romance lovers of the world:

**_THE ROMANCE WILL NOW BE SERIOUSLY LACKING!_**

These last few chapters have existed to quench a craving. There will be little hints of it here and there, like there had been in the first story. Remember children, Naruto and Sasuke's relationship is still a rocky one. It's still tipsy; leaning to 'I adore you' to 'God you suck moose balls'. Neither of them has said 'I love you' to each other, though in the past book Naruto did contemplate to Neji that he _thought_ he loved Sasuke. So we'll see how evil I am this time, eh? _(smirks)_

Anyhow, I hope you enjoy this update. I think I've made up update days now. Sundays and Thursdays. How does that sound? It gives me room to think up what's going to happen in each chapter, since this plot is a little thicker than the last one; we're learning about Naruto _and_ Kakashi, and we're leaning about this mysterious gang called ROOT, as well as other briefly mentioned gangs from book one.

Enjoy!

Disclaimer: Naruto and Co. belong to Masashi Kishimoto.

* * *

Neji hadn't been able to walk back home, like he had told his uncle he would. That was because the flooding outside had increased as he had visited his ill cousin, so he was stuck in the waiting room along with the few other visitors that had been brave enough to dare the flooding to come visit loved ones. He sat in a plastic chair, legs folded Indian style as he looked out the window to see the rain slowly letting up; the dark sky lightening to a lighter grey as the sun seemed to peek through the folds of the clouds. Brown hair fell into his face unknowingly, and the Hyuuga didn't even bother pushing it back since he didn't want to move. His pale eyes blinked at the sudden obtrusion, yes, but that wasn't enough to make him move so he could push the obtrusion away.

He heard someone mutter something about some people from downtown was starting to prepare to drain the streets and they'd all be home. How he knew this was from his portable radio, which, apparently, he kept on him in emergencies. Neji sighed, closing his eyes and blocking out the other voices as he thought about Hinata then.

She had looked so frail behind the glass, her eyes closed as she slept quietly. The wires that had been connected to her, as well as the small tubes in her nose giving her clear, pure oxygen...She looked so small with it all around her. His hands tightened their grip on his forearms, and his eyes squeezed shut tighter, before he heard someone heavier than himself sit next to him, placing down what seemed to be a suitcase. His eyes opened, and he glanced over to see his uncle sitting there; hands folded in front of him, fingers laced together with his forearms resting on his knees as he leaned forward in a thoughtful position. Hiashi glanced at him then, a small smile on his lips and Neji looked away from him, frowning a bit. "Are you still angry with me, Neji?" He asked, his voice tired and laced with what seemed to be frustration; and the younger Hyuuga didn't blame the older Hyuuga for being frustrated. Neji was being oddly childish.

"No," he said softly after a few minutes, still not looking at him. Hiashi raised an eyebrow, and Neji saw it in his peripheral vision so he continued to explain. "I'm angry with myself. Angry that I couldn't protect her or help her earlier...Like I couldn't help my father." His eyes squeezed shut then, his mouth twisted into a grim line. "I don't know what's wrong with her just like I didn't know what was wrong with him. Lung cancer? It can't be this difficult! It can't be this hard to cure. She was fine, just fine, when she was suddenly hit with an illness? That sounds too much like Umino-san to me..." He looked away from him again, scowling at his own incompetence for understanding the situation when he felt Hiashi's hand be placed on his shoulder.

He looked at his uncle oddly, blinking a bit before Hiashi frown, shaking his head. "If it's the fault of anyone, Neji," he began softly, looking at him with eyes that had seen too much; Neji had never noticed the sadness in them before, never bothered to pay attention. "It would be my fault." Neji looked at him oddly, eyes wide as Hiashi removed his hand, turning to look at the window where the sun was attempting in vain to weakly shine through. "I'm the one who initiated the change within the Hyuuga family after all. Did you know, Neji, that Hizashi's and my father never had the Byakugen like we do? He could never see through lies, facades or anything of the sort. He could never see through the walls themselves. Did you know that?"

"I thought this was a family thing." Neji said suddenly, frowning. "That's what I was taught. That this gift was brought down in the family and that everyone was blessed with it. Which is why the entire Hyuuga family now has the same eyes as I do; pupil-less eyes the colour of silver or lavender, depending on the light." He looked at his uncle curiously, eyes narrowed a little suspiciously. "My grandfather didn't have it, though?"

"No." Hiashi looked at him softly. "We have been lying to our children since the day Hizashi and I found the underground scientific group ROOT."

"That's a gang from this city."

"Originally they were just a small science unit. When the things they were studying became an interest to dangerous groups like Shukaku or Akatsuki...Well, they had to hire guards, didn't they?"

"And what does this have to do with anything?" Neji demanded then, looking at him with narrowed eyes. "Why does this make it your fault?"

"We obtained the Byakugen."

"What?"

"The Byakugen was given to us by ROOT."

* * *

"ROOT: the scientific gang that's goals had been to find an answer to everything life gave us and to make life easier on all people. When dangerous gangs like Akatsuki, Shukaku and other nameless gangs that were disbanded years ago grew interested in their studies, they formed a group of 'bodyguards'; basically thugs in the gang. The muscle, while everyone else was the brain." Naruto said, shrugging a shoulder as he looked at Sasuke with interest. "Why the sudden need to know?"

"Something that came up in conversation one day." He said simply, looking away from the blonde as he left the room. Naruto blinked, sitting up and watching the dark boy walk out before he got to his feet and followed him to the front door, watching with wide eyes as he slipped on his dry shoes, tying up the laces and grabbing his coat and backpack which held his homework and his clothes from the day before. "Where are you going? Just because the rain stopped, does that mean the flooding is gone?"

"It's lowered considerably." Sasuke opened the door and Naruto peeked out to see that City Hall was doing its damnedest to drain it like they had promised they would. "I need to get home. I have things I have to do." He looked at Naruto with a quiet gaze and Naruto frowned, crossing his arms.

"You sound like the cliché hero about to go save the world leaving his damsel behind." Sasuke smirked, rolling his eyes and Naruto grinned a little. "I ain't no damsel and you sure as hell ain't gonna save the world, Sasuke. So what are you doing that so important?"

"Hacking." Sasuke kissed his cheek, smirking at him before he walked out and Naruto stood there, shocked, blinking before he closed the door, looking behind him at Kakashi who smirked at him, shrugging a shoulder.

"What the hell did you tell him in that kitchen?"

"That something precious to him is in danger and he needs to be sure that it's safe from the wrong hands." Kakashi then looked up as the door suddenly knocked, and he indicated for Naruto to open it. The blonde did so, and there stood Kisame Hoshigaki in his 6'6 glory, his skin pale, almost tinged blue with his tattooed gills on his cheeks, his hazel/yellow eyes and his blue dyed hair, standing in a black T-shirt and dark blue jeans, a leather jacket slung over his shoulder as he stood there grinning. "Kisame; good to see you."

"Hey Kakashi," he greeted; stepping inside once Naruto side stepped to let him. "I saw Itachi's kid brother leave a little bit ago. He didn't even acknowledge me. How rude is _that_ I ask you?"

"He's probably preoccupied with a little assignment I gave him." Kakashi said, smirking. "He has a lot of thinking to do if he wishes to complete it."

"Ah; I'm going to guess it has to do with...You-know-what." Kisame said, nodding when Kakashi nodded a little. "...Kakashi why do you hide your face? You're not disfigured or something."

"I hide it because it brings a sense of mystery and wonder to the students, and it lets me make up some of the best assignments in my English class." Kakashi grinned before he nodded for Kisame to follow him into the kitchen, stopping only to look at Naruto as he stood there stupidly by the door, blinking at Kisame and Kakashi. "Naruto, go to your room and do the homework you've neglected to do." He said, smiling. "Kisame and I have some things to discuss."

"And as leader of Bijuu, I don't need to hear it or something?" Naruto asked sarcastically, crossing his arms and leaning against the wall, staring at him with a raised eyebrow. Kakashi smirked at him, nodding to his sarcastic assumption. "And why can't I?"

"Because we're discussing things that you don't need to know right yet." He nodded turning and leaving the blonde. The Uzumaki kid had the biggest urge to go and eavesdrop, but Kisame suddenly appeared in front of the doorway, his back to him. He turned his head a little so those hazel/yellow eyes stared at him, and a feral grin with sharp teeth appeared. Naruto inaudibly gulped before he sighed and went upstairs.

"Unfair much."

* * *

Sasuke entered his apartment, soaked to the knees but dry nonetheless. Sighing, he kicked off his shoes, pulling off his pants and walking to his bathroom, throwing them into the laundry basket to take to the laundry machine on the first floor later, before going into his room and grabbing a new set of jeans, pulling them on. After securely getting dressed, he went to his kitchen and set on the coffee machine, filling in a filter with coffee grounds and placing it in the container, turning on the machine so it started to make the strong black liquid.

After he was sure that the coffee machine would explode or something, he went back into his room, gathering some papers and a few pens as well as pencils, biting his bottom lip. He thought to himself only for a moment before he shook his head, walking out of his room and setting the writing supplies he just got on the couch, walking to the phone and pressing a speed-dial digit. He waited for a few minutes before someone answered.

'Hello?'

"Hey Sakura; I'm home." He pulled the phone away when she suddenly shrieked at him, wondering where the hell he'd been. After he was sure he wouldn't be deafened, he placed the phone back at his ear. "I was at Naruto's last night; got stuck because of the flooding."

'Ah, alright.' Sakura calmed, it seemed, before he heard movement, before he guessed she must be shifting on her seat making herself comfortable. 'Why the call? Do you need help with some homework? Shocking if it's true, since I hear you're a genius in about everything.'

"Hardly." Sasuke rolled his eyes, smirking before he sat down on the counter of his kitchen, watching the coffee machine. "I have some business I need to do...And I'll need your help."

'I file, Sasuke. What kind of help would you want from a gang secretary?'

"You can guess anyone's password and you're a rookie hacker. You also hold Shikamaru's phone number. I'll need that, and I need you to come up here after you give it to me."

'Why do you need a hacker?' Sasuke paused, frowning, considering not telling her before he rationalized that he could trust her; it _was_ Sakura after all.

"I'm hacking into Aniki's computer."

* * *

Sakura, after having given Sasuke the Nara's phone number, hung up and stared at the phone for a long time before she blinked a few times, standing up and mechanically going to the door of the apartment. Ino, who was sitting at the kitchen table suffering the homework she had neglected to do on their day off. The blonde looked up at the pinkette as she slipped on a pair of sandals, raising an eyebrow. "Those are my sandals, you know."

"Huh?" Sakura turned to look at her, before she smiled sheepishly. "Sorry about that."

"You can borrow them, its fine; just tell me." Ino smiled at her, raising an eyebrow. "What are you doing, by the way?"

"Going to visit Sasuke."

"He's home?" Ino sat up a little straighter, a smile on her lips. Sakura looked at her with a deadpan expression. "I'm almost done!"

"No you're not. Besides...He just wants to see Shikamaru and myself." She frowned a little. "He's doing something important."

"What sort of something?"

"A something that doesn't concern you just yet. I'll tell you when it does." Sakura smiled. "Thanks for lending me the sandals; I'll see you in a bit!" She then turned and walked out of the apartment, locking it behind her. Ino watched the door for a while before she sighed, staring at her homework.

"French I will defeat you..."

* * *

He was napping at leisure when the phone suddenly rang. Glancing at the contraption beside him with an almost disdainful glare, he waited to see if his mother would pick up; but then he remembered his mother and father had went out and so he was stuck with answering any and all calls. He reached over after the fifth ring, picking up and clicking it on, pressing it to his ear. "Nara Residence."

'Shikamaru,' a voice Shikamaru never thought he'd hear in his phone spoke out, and the lazy boy sat up a little more, his eyes slightly widened and jaw a little slack. 'I need you to come to my apartment. You know where I live don't you?'

"Konoha St. Same apartment as Sakura and Ino." Shikamaru muttered flatly and Sasuke made a noise as if to say that he was right. Shikamaru then frowned, narrowing his eyes a little. "Why do you need me to come over there, anyhow? I've never been to your apartment before."

'I need a hacker that's as good as my Aniki. I'm going into his computer. There's things there I need. And you'll be my tutor.' Shikamaru's eyes widened and he blinked a little. 'Nara?'

"I'm here, I'm here." Shikamaru ran a hand through his hair, which was out of the ponytail at the moment before he sighed. "Why do you need to learn to hack?"

'I just told you, didn't I? There are things on my Aniki's computer that I need...They're dangerous files. It's one of the reasons he was wanted dead.' Shikamaru heard a heavy sigh. 'You were his 'heir' of sorts, right? He taught you everything he knew? So you know his habits better than anyone other than me.'

"Yeah...You could say." Shikamaru sighed, looking out the window to see that the flooding had gone down enough for people to walk in it and drive—which people outside were doing at that very moment. "Alright...I'll be there in ten minutes."

'Sakura and I will be here waiting.'

"Sakura, too? Why do you need her?"

'She's good at guessing passwords, right? She can help me figure out his passwords, and you can help me get around any sort of defence he'd have on his computer. One of the rules about Itachi's computer, that Aniki always told me, was to never touch it. There's so much protection, it'd put your computer to shame.'

"I know; I was always impressed with it." Shikamaru sighed before he got off of his bed, tying his hair up as the phone was cradled between his jaw and shoulder. "So, do I need to bring anything?"

'Anything, really. We'll be talking a lot, though. We need to get into Itachi's mind.'

"...I've never heard you call him Itachi, yet you've said it twice now. This is serious isn't it?"

'More serious than any hospital.' Shikamaru blanched eyes wide before he smirked. 'I know you hacked in there.'

"Of course you would. You have the best hearing other than Naruto after all." He heard the Uchiha laugh softly on the other end. "What's so funny?"

'I didn't hear. I saw you.' Sasuke said, and Shikamaru could hear his smirk. 'Really now, you should be more aware of who's behind you. I'm such an interesting child aren't I?'

"Sasuke..." Shikamaru sighed before he shook his head. "I'll be there in ten."

'Until then.' Sasuke hung up and Shikamaru stared at the phone as the dial tone rang from the speaker before he placed it back on its cradle, looking out the window again at the weakly shining sun.

"This will be interesting..."

* * *

Neji sat in the car beside Hiashi as he looked out the window, frowning as he thought to himself. ROOT...Byakugen...The mysterious cancer plaguing members of the Hyuuga family...And then the connection with Naruto, the Uchihas...Even the Sabaku siblings...

What did it all mean, though? How could they all be connected? The young boy didn't understand, since Hiashi hadn't explained more than what he had said about how they obtained the Byakugen. He just said ROOT gave it to them; he wouldn't say anything else. Perhaps from shame, or from lack of knowledge; Neji did not know. But he did know one thing...Or he thought he did, anyhow...

If ROOT was the cause of the cancer plaguing Hinata, then he would find the members of the disbanded gang and demand they cure her...Even if he had to threaten to kill them first. He would not hesitate. But he didn't know who was in ROOT before they disbanded; his uncle wouldn't say. He must've been sworn to secrecy, he or forgot or something...But he just wouldn't talk about it anymore. He clamed up as soon as he realized what he had told Neji and the impact of those words.

His eyes then widened a little in realization. Tenzo...Sai...

They had been the muscle...Hadn't they?

But they were still in the house in the destroyed part of the city, staying out of people's way, but Tenzo continued with the alias that his name was Yamato and Sai was mute after something happened to him while he was in ROOT...

The Hyuuga closed his eyes, frowning. This was not going to be easy at all...

* * *

Sasuke opened the door to reveal Sakura looking at him with a smile, walking into the apartment after he stepped aside and she slipped off her sandals, going over to the kitchen table where she saw a cup of black coffee steaming beside a pile of papers with writing and scratches on it. Sasuke sat back down, looking at her as she sat down in her usual seat, taking the papers as he handed them to her. "Alright...So what are we trying to do?"

"We need to figure out possible passwords for Itachi's computer..." he mumbled. "There's one to log into the computer, and then I know there will be a bunch more. We just need to get into the main computer first before we worry about that. We'll give the password to Shikamaru, and then he can check what sort of protection my brother had on his computer to make sure no one ever read anything from it." He sighed, closing his eyes and running a hand over his face before looking at Sakura. "What do you suggest?"

"I suggest you start writing down his hobbies, his favourite foods, his favourite people, his birthday, favourite band...Anything like that. Favourite number combinations as well, if he had any."

"He had two." Sasuke mumbled, looking to the side. "One was his high school locker combination and the other as the combination that we made up as a sort of code when we were smaller." He smiled a little at the pleasant memory that he had regained, having lost that in the memory suppression, before looking at Sakura. "...I'll get to work then."

"And I'll make you some food."

"Please don't burn my kitchen down. I eat here."

"I'm making you a sandwich; how hard can it be?"

* * *

Kakashi and Kisame seemed to be in a staring contest, eyes locked on each other before Kakashi sighed, closing his eyes and turning away from the taller Akatsuki spy. "The movements and actions of Hidan Morte, Kisame." He said softly, looking up at him with a lazy gaze. "I need to know that if I'll be able to make sure he doesn't do anything to Naruto."

"He's been going out a lot more lately; he's probably been dropping by here or the school." Kisame mumbled, looking to the side. "He's been acting colder than usual, throwing himself into his religious rituals and cutting off from everyone; even his partner Kakuzu." Kakashi raised an eyebrow a little. "He seems to be praying to his god about something. We're just not sure what. We don't go into his temple since it gives us all the heebie-jeebies." Kakashi laughed at the childish term and Kisame shrugged a little, crossing his arms from his place in front of the doorway, listening for any unwanted listeners. "Other than that...Nothing."

"That's a load of help, isn't it?" Kakashi mumbled, rubbing his red eye before he glanced at Kisame with his dark blue eye, looking at him quietly. "...Have you been keeping to your promise, Kisame?" Kisame suddenly looked uncomfortable, and Kakashi sighed, shaking his head as he stood up. "He made you promise before he died, Kisame; he was your best friend wasn't he?"

"Of course he was. It's just...To become the kid's guardian? I'm sorry, but if I even said 'hello' to that kid he'd bite my face off. The kid doesn't exactly like me, Kakashi."

"Well can you blame him? You were his partner in Akatsuki. You knew what was really going on in Itachi's head that Sasuke didn't understand. He used to trust you, didn't he?"

"Then Itachi was murdered in front of his eyes. The kid's not stable, Kakashi. And he sure as hell knows how to hold one fucking grudge."

"Watch your tongue I got a kid in the house."

"Who's the leader of a gang that's filled with two ex-murderers, right?" Kisame rolled his eyes, snorting. "Kakashi, you know better than anyone. Once a murderer, always a murderer. A mindset can't change on the flip of a coin." He frowned. "Neither Sasuke nor Gaara are two-faced. They're unstable. They need help. If they're given the chance, they sure as hell will kill someone again. Give the Uchiha brat a weapon, a reason and a victim, and they're as good as dead. Hell, just give him a reason and a victim, and they're as good as gone."

Kakashi looked away, crossing his arms. "Sasuke's trying to change himself. He knows he has instability and he's trying to fix that. You can tell if you watch him carefully. He's throwing himself into normal life, and he's also going on sorts of 'missions' Naruto gives that doesn't deal with giving damage to the other party." He frowned, looking away. "And Gaara's much better than he had been before, you know."

"They may be getting better, Kakashi...But to sound cliché, a leopard can't change its spots." He then blinked, turning his head a little. "Naruto ya brat get back to your room and do your goddamn homework!"

"No need to shout I was thirsty!"

"LIAR."

* * *

Just as he promised, ten minutes after being called there came a buzz at Sasuke's door. The onyx eyed teen looked up, glancing at Sakura who was going through the list of words Sasuke had come up with, eating half the sandwich she made for him, before he stood and walked over. He pressed the button that said 'door', leaning on it for a moment before letting it go and he walked back to the table, sitting down and drinking the rest of his coffee, getting up to make some more.

"Can I have a cup, too?" Sakura asked, looking over at Sasuke with a smile. "I didn't know Itachi had so many favourite bands."

"He was what one would call a 'music junky'; what can I say?" Sasuke said with a shrug and a smirk. There was a knock on the door. "It's open!"

The door opened and Shikamaru came in with his laptop, closing the door with his foot and removing his shoes. He looked around the apartment, this being the first time he'd ever stepped foot in here, before he walked to the table where Sakura was sitting, finishing off her half of the sandwich and looking at a list of words. "What's that for?"

"Password possibilities; starting with the basics." Sakura glanced up at him with a smirk. "Of course, you would know if Itachi used this sort of traditional password for his computer."

"He liked traditional better than today's form of passwords of making words up." The Nara agreed, setting up his laptop before looking at Sasuke who was staring at him. "Hey Sasuke,"

"Shikamaru," the Uchiha nodded to him, indicating to the coffee machine. "Would you like a cup?"

"I'm a tea guy myself." Shikamaru said, walking over to the kitchen area and looking around. "I'll make my own cup. You boot up Itachi's computer." The lazy boy looked over at him then, his grey eyes firm. "You're okay with me touching it, right?"

"As long as you can break into it. You're not allowed to read anything in it, though; those are for my eyes only." Sasuke mumbled, glancing at him warningly; eyes flashing briefly. Shikamaru looked at him blankly, before the intelligence gatherer nodded and he went back to making himself a cup of tea while Sasuke poured Sakura some black coffee, pouring in his own mug. He put his mug down at his spot, placing Sakura's beside her as he walked by her down the hall where the rooms were located.

The Uchiha paused by the room he hadn't entered since the last storm they had during the summer, before he pushed the door opened and walked inside, looking at the interior with a carefully blank gaze. It was just as he had left it; perfectly tidy as if Itachi had just cleaned it before he went to drive Sasuke to school and then arrive at work late like he always did. He frowned as he glanced at the card on the desk beside him, recognizing it as Itachi's old manager sending him a card telling him he was sorry that Itachi was dead, he was a wonderful addiction to the Video Shack, blah, blah, blah...

He then walked around the bed, walking over to the black wooden desk where Itachi's sleek black computer sat; flat screen monitor having been turned off for over a year. Sasuke sat down in the black leather swivel arm chair, leaning back against it for a moment before he looked at the monitor, bending down and pressing the flat button to the computer's tower, booting it up. He turned on the screen via the button on the underside of the flat screen, and he watched as it flicked on, numbers, words and information that he quickly memorized out of habit flashed before it turned to the loading screen. It then came to the blue page with an option of choosing either 'Itachi' or Sharingan', both with passwords.

Sasuke frowned for a moment, clicking on 'Itachi', and typing in something that just came to mind when he had seen the name: 'otouto'. He pressed enter, and it entered. His eyes widened as the screen loaded, the options and desktop loading before he saw a file in the short-cut buttons that was named 'Otouto'. Licking his lips and glancing at the door, hearing Shikamaru and Sakura talking about something, he clicked on the file and a Microsoft Word document opened showing a letter.

_Hey otouto! _The words jumped out at him like a Jack-in-the-box, and his eyes widened a bit before he continued to read.

_I guess I must be dead if you're reading this, since I __know__ I banned you from ever coming onto my computer. Hopefully I died helping you, since if I didn't then I must say I suck. _

_Anyhow, I digress. This is a letter of explanation, Sasuke. A letter that explains everything that you probably don't understand. By now, I'm sure you realize that I was in a gang called 'Akatsuki'. It's a gang filled with those who were too strong for other gangs to handle. I'm part of it so I can keep an eye on the leader; a mysterious, suspicious guy who usually hides his face in the shadows or by his cloak. Yeah, the gang's really uniformed; bothers me as I guess you already could guess. You know how much I hated uniforms._

_Anyhow, I'm dead for probably two reasons. _

_One: I finally got a hold of Orochimaru (you'll remember him soon enough, since I'm not there to suppress your memories anymore. Yeah, I made you believe in some lies! Sorry kid.) and killed the bastard dead like I swore I would one day or_

_Two: Akatsuki finally managed to kill me off so that they can get their hands on this computer. Otouto, you can't let them touch this computer. This computer holds the information and the keys to everything I ever learned while in the community of thugs. While I was in the uniformed, strict gang ANBU—my partner Hatake Kakashi, a great man who, if you ever meet him, I'm sure you'll like—I saw a lot of things I shouldn't have seen and some things...Happened. And I kept a tab on this all since kid, I'm a hacker. I need to know this stuff so I'm always ahead of everyone else. _

_You saw the option of going into a file called 'Sharingan' before you clicked 'Itachi'. All information is there. I can't give you the passwords, since I can almost feel that if you don't get to this computer first, Leader will and he'll first hack here, read this letter and get all information he can. So I'm sorry, but you'll have to guess the password from here to get into there. _

_But I'll give you a clue, since I'm your Aniki and I love you. _

_**Begins with 'A'**_

Sasuke paused, looking at the letter for a moment before he frowned, and finished the letter.

_So I'll see you around! Well...When you die, that is. And you can't die young like I did. You gotta die old and grey. And if you have kids, huzzah! If not; I knew it, you're gay. _

_Take care of yourself, otouto,_

_Itachi_

Sasuke sat there, staring at the letter before he felt something wet sliding down his cheek. Blinking, he wiped a hand over the skin and saw a tear on his hand. He smiled a little before his eyes widened suddenly.

"Shikamaru! Sakura! I know how to get in!"

* * *

Naruto sat on the ground, legs crossed as he stared at his punching bag with a contemplating look. Finally, he stood, wrapping his hands in bandages before he started to kick and punch his punching bag, pounding into it to let out some steam and to clear his thoughts.

'_Once a murderer, always a murderer. _He frowned as Kisame's words flowed in and out of his head before he punched the bag hard enough to make it shudder on his stand. His grinded his teeth together, looking at the knuckles on his fist to see red seeping through the bandages before he shrugged, sucking on his fist as he stared at nothing. 'Sasuke can't still be like that...He's changed. Sure, he's unstable. But he won't kill people anymore. He knows it's wrong.'

_**Yeah, but Chidori doesn't. Chidori still thinks they're napping and they won't ever wake up. The kid has no control on Chidori, remember? **_

'That's because he was never taught to control it like I can control you.'

_**Yeah, kid, about that. You might not be able to control me for much longer.**_

'And why not?' Naruto frowned, turning to look at the ground as he took his fist out of his mouth; his brows furrowed in confusion.

_**I'm upgrading.**_


	8. Connections

A/N: So! Here's the update on the day I assigned myself. I think I'm doing pretty well with keeping to schedule. Eheh. Anyhow, I hope you enjoy this chapter; it jumps around a little but it needs to because things are now happening and it isn't as slow as it used to be. Things will be realized, remember and things like that.

Oh, and this isn't a mystery. The figuring out of the passwords are just logic in my mind. So enjoy.

P.S. SEE? Itachi's still a big role! He'll never truly be forgotten! Just...He won't be around to comfort Sasuke anymore and make him forget. Poor little uke. ...Who's turning cold...

Disclaimer: Naruto and Co. belong to Masashi Kishimoto.

* * *

Shikamaru and Sakura rushed into Itachi's room when Sasuke called out to them, and the Nara looked at the Word document on the screen with wide eyes. "You cracked into it?"

"I cracked into the computer that he used for school. 'Sharingan' is his other account on here with the actual information I need." He swivelled around to look at them. "He left me a note; probably before the stuff from last year was going on. He knew he was going to die young somehow, so he wrote me a note that he wanted me to find." He looked at the document, frowning a little. "He left a clue about the password and it just suddenly clicked."

"What was the clue?" Sakura asked, looking at him with interested eyes.

"'Begins with 'A''." Sasuke said simply.

"Well, that could mean numerous things, couldn't it? He has bands he liked that begin with 'A' and other people."

"There's a pattern, though; you said he liked traditional. He also liked simplicities. Itachi didn't like to get complicated." Sasuke smirked. "The password into 'Itachi' was 'otouto'; me." He watched them as comprehension dawned on both their faces and Sasuke turned back to the computer, logging out and then clicking 'Sharingan'. "So, logically speaking, if I were Itachi...I would use the name that _I_ always called _him_, since the first password was what _he_ usually called _me_." He typed in some keys then. "Meaning..."

"...The password's 'Aniki'." Shikamaru muttered, a grin forming on his face as the account loaded in front of them. Sasuke then stood up, and the hacker sat down, cracking his knuckles. "Alright...I've never been on this computer..." He frowned a little, looking over at Sasuke. "This might take me a while. I know for a fact he has five other passwords to log in completely. You think that mind of yours can think of one?"

Sasuke frowned, sitting on his Aniki's bed as he thought, looking at the ground. He closed his eyes, thinking over places, people and things that he enjoyed and cared for, while also thinking like he would, as Kakashi had advised him to. He opened his eyes a little, frowning a little bit. "...I think Bijuu would be one...And maybe Akatsuki." He looked up at him. "Try gang names of people he held close, excluding me. 'Shark' would be a good one, or 'Kyuubi'." He stood, walking to the door, Sakura and Shikamaru both staring at him. "If nothing else works...Use 'Mikoto' or 'Fugaku'." He said, nodding to them before he quietly left, walking out of the room back into the kitchen where his coffee was.

The pinkette glanced at the brunette, who shrugged a little, before the both of them turned to start guessing the passwords, using the leads that Sasuke had given them.

* * *

Naruto was stalk still, hands fisted at his sides as the words echoed within his head, Kyuubi staying silent for once in this moment of shocked thought. The blonde shook his head then, frowning a little as he sat on his bed, unwrapping his hands from the bandages, looking at the damage on his knuckles from before when he started to talk to Kyuubi again.

'Upgrading? What the heck do you mean by 'upgrading'?' He narrowed his eyes as he heard Kyuubi seem to mutter something before Naruto's inner consciousness suddenly blanked and he was pulled into Kyuubi's realm, where the redheaded man sat on a traditional Japanese styled table, looking at him with red eyes. "Sit down, would you?"

"Yeah, sure." The blonde sat down opposite of Kyuubi, and he looked at the man that was a manifestation of the demon within his mind. He frowned as Kyuubi stayed silent, looking at his pale clasped hands for a moment before Naruto clears his throat impatiently. "Well?"

"Patience, kit." Kyuubi sighed, looking up at him. "I don't exactly understand what 'upgrading' is, either. All I know is that I get stronger; usually you've been able to handle these bursts of strength, and so you've been fine. But this is starting to get out of your control. You've noticed that you're spacing out more. I can't block any memories of yours you don't want to see anymore. And the fact that you're getting a little angrier each day is from the amount of power I'm emitting." He looked at him with dark eyes. "I'm getting a little too dangerous for you to handle now."

"I'm sure we'll figure something out. My dad wouldn't have made something evil."

"I don't understand how your dad created me. That story I fed you when you were younger was a lie. I don't know why I'm here. All I know is that I am too dangerous. And I don't think Arashi understood that."

* * *

Kisame left the house an hour ago, leaving Kakashi alone with his thoughts in the kitchen, staring out the window at the weakly shining sun as it started to set for the day. He sighed, running fingers through his silver hair before he stood up, walking up the stairs to his room. He paused by Naruto's room, hearing utter silence, and frowned, thinking the kid was probably asleep. He then passed by him, walking into his room and closing the door behind him, walking to the mirror of his room an sweeping his hair back to stare at the long, thin scar over his left eye where his red eye stared at him. He traced the scar with a finger, frowning a little as he thought of how he had gotten it.

Shaking his head, he looked away from the mirror, pulling off his shirt and pants, throwing them into the basket by his door, pulling on the flannel pants on his bed before he crawled under the sheets, hiding his face in the pillows. His blue eye stared out at his room as his red eye stayed stuffed in his pillow so that he didn't have to look through it. "Obito...It's strange...Looking through your eye..." He mumbled, staring at the photo beside his bed where two people stood, smiling and holding a little boy in between them who seemed to be laughing.

The man on the right had black, short, wild hair with dark brown eyes. He had orange goggles on top of his head, and he wore orange and black; his favourite colours. His skin was pale, and he had a face meant for smiling. He had one arm around the young woman beside him, the other one holding the little hand of the boy between them.

The young woman had short brown hair with brown eyes, and wore a headband around her forehead keeping her bangs back. On her cheeks were orange rectangles, and she had pale skin as well; a soft smile playing on her lips. She wore simple clothes of white and brown, with hints of blue in it. In her arms was the boy, and she was leaning slightly into the man's embrace.

The boy was a younger Naruto; probably when he was around four or five years old. His blonde hair was short and spiky like the man's, and his blue eyes were bright with laughter as he seemed to be laughing at something the photographer—Kakashi himself—had been doing to get him to smile. The teacher smiled a little at the memory of the day that picture was taken. Naruto had scraped his knee and he hadn't wanted to smile because it hurt, and then Kakashi had done something silly—he couldn't even remember what—and the little boy who seemed so carefree and innocent back then had laughed so much it was even harder to get the photo.

Kakashi then sighed, closing his eyes as he frowned. 'Obito...Rin...Naruto misses you, but he goes to visit you...While I myself cower away because I'm ashamed in the part I took in your early deaths...'

He turned away from the picture, curling under the blankets and forcing himself to sleep, not noticing when Naruto opened his bedroom door, padded inside and slipped into the bed beside him like a little lost boy needing comfort.

* * *

The next day the flood was drained enough so that kids and teachers alike could get to the schools and learn/teach. This made Naruto a very upset boy because he hadn't done his homework the day before like he was so brashly ordered to by Kisame. So one could find Naruto Uzumaki inside on the stage of the cafeteria—since the roof was soaked—rushing through his assignments in German, English, Geography and the like.

When Sakura Haruno and Shikamaru Nara came into the cafeteria to the stage, looking more tired than Naruto did, they were a little confused by his frenzied state at first before they gave each other knowing looks, climbing onto the stage and sitting on either side of the blonde. "So, Naruto...Do your homework?"

"Shut up." The pinkette laughed, the lazy boy smirking and leaning against a wall behind him, looking at the small, lingering crowd in the cafeteria as hungry boys and girls looked at the door to the actual caf with hungry eyes. "Caf's not opened yet, is it?"

"The lunch ladies have gone senile and aren't letting anyone in until it is exactly 7:15. I ask you, is that normal?"

"Is it normal for kids to come to school before seven?" Shikamaru retorted and Naruto glanced up at him, raising an eyebrow, before he went back to translating some verbs and nouns into German. He paused for a second, holding his dictionary with one hand, his other holding his pencil before he groaned and smacked his head against his textbook in his lap, slumped over like he was dead. Shikamaru patted his back, looking up when there was some sudden excitement in the cafeteria. His eyes widened, a smirk coming to his face as he saw three people coming towards them, before he nudged Naruto. "Visitors."

"Visitors?" Naruto's head shot up, and he blinked a few times before he saw who Shikamaru was talking about and grinned. "And distractions hurrah!" He threw his homework to the side, jumping off the stage and walking over to Temari as she came up to him with a smirk, arms opened for a hug. "Temari-chan! Good to see you."

"Good to see you too, Uzumaki; you've been taking care of my little brother?"

"He hasn't killed anyone yet, has he?"

"Not that I know of."

"Then sure I have." The two blonde smirked to each other, before Naruto glanced behind the eldest Sabaku sibling to see her brothers and Sakon, Ukon and Tayuya. He smiled at them, raising an eyebrow at Tayuya's brown hair and she smiled a little sheepishly, shrugging. "Needed a change, Tayuya?"

"You could say." She said, fingering the long brown locks before the blonde nodded, leading them all back to the stage where Naruto was faced yet again with German. "Taking German, Kyuubi?"

"Painfully so." He sighed tiredly, sitting down and placing his homework back in his lap, looking up at Temari as she looked over what he was writing, before snatching his pencil, scribbling in the right answer. "...You took German?"

"Yeah." Temari smirked. "Why not? I already know Japanese. Taking German seemed like a good third language."

"Be my hero?" He held out his homework and the blonde girl laughed, taking his book and looking over everything, writing down the answers while Naruto looked at his English, decided Kakashi could kill him when they got home after school and put his stuff away. "So what are you doing here, Temari?"

"I thought I'd take a break from the crap central my job is, and visit Konoha high. That cool with you, boss?" The eldest Sabaku glanced up at him with a raised eyebrow and he smiled, nodding before she looked back at his homework. "Sasori-nii also told me some stuff that's been going on. Like...How he had to quit Akatsuki?" She looked up at him again, raising an eyebrow and Naruto frowned, looking away. "What's with that?"

"Akatsuki is planning on a revolution." The Uzumaki mumbled looking at his lap as Neji came into the caf, sitting next to Sakura who leaned against him, holding his hand comfortingly. "We haven't had one of those in years..."

"And why did Sasori-nii have to quit if that's the case?"

"All betrayers in that gang are killed, did you know that?" Naruto said suddenly, and Temari's eyes widened. "If they found out that Sasori was leaking information to us, their main enemy, the one gang that has a chance of standing us to them...They'd murder him on the spot. Their leader is not a kind man at all."

"I wouldn't think so." All members turned to see a new person walking up to him, hands in pockets as they walked in a lazy manner over to them. "After all...He's been known as one of the most murderous people out there in gangs...Other than our Chidori of course." Naruto raised an eyebrow as he stared at the person in front of them for a long time, looking behind him to see a few other people he thought he'd never see together again.

"...Kakashi? Genma...Hayate? _ANKO_?" He paused, eyes widening even more. "Fuck, is that GAI?"

"YOSH!" Naruto shuddered.

* * *

Sasuke walked into the cafeteria to a sight he had never seen a day in his life in this high school...And he had seen a lot of things. Don't remind him of the janitor's closet, he'll only have nightmares.

What he saw was Genma, Hayate, Anko and Gai sitting amongst the gang Bijuu, with Temari and the former Oto members all talking about something. He also saw Kakashi, who seemed to be telling Naruto something, though Sasuke couldn't really tell since as usual the lower half of his face was covered by that bloody mask of his. The Uchiha then sighed, shaking his head and walking over to the stage, climbing up and sitting at the corner, pulling out his sketch book as he went to work on a profile he'd been working on for a while. He sensed eyes on him then, and looked up to see Neji had walked over to him soundlessly like he had the first time Sasuke had ever entered Konoha high.

The Hyuuga sat next to the Uchiha, looking at him quietly before glancing at his sketch pad. Sasuke didn't cover it from his eyes, though, because of all the males in the gang, Sasuke was probably closest to Neji. "How long have you been drawing that one?"

"...Around seven months now. I can't get anything right." The dark boy sighed, but he continued to sketch in lines, closing his eyes once in a while for a mental picture. Neji watched him, frowning a little as he erased an entire segment, before the Uchiha looked at him. "Why are the teachers here?"

"They were all apart of Bijuu once in their lives; even Gai." Neji glanced over. "Because of the revolution...They've decided to rejoin, make sure nothing like last year happens." The pale eyed boy glanced over to see Sasuke hunched over his sketch pad, staring out at the floor in front of the stage with a murderous expression on his face. "Sasuke...?"

"They're making sure no one that has a loved one dies again, right?" He whispered darkly. Neji looked at him oddly, cocking his head to the side. "They're making sure that no one important to them dies...Right? Tell me the truth." He looked over at him, eyes narrowed dangerously and Neji shifted a little uncomfortably. The Uchiha then snorted. "Tch. Of course they are." He then glanced up as he saw another teacher walking over, going back to his drawings. "Zabuza?"

The gym teacher for the males lifted a hand in greeting, hauling himself up to the stage and walking over to Naruto who looked at him, nodding a little in greeting before going back to the conversation at hand. Sasuke frowned, looking away from him as he looked down at his sketch quietly.

"Things are getting a little...Surreal."

* * *

Naruto looked at all the teachers sitting around him with the members of Bijuu that usually attended these sort of meetings. He glanced over at Sasuke and Neji then, frowning as Sasuke refused to meet his gaze before he looked back to the people around him. "Kisame spoke to me on the phone this morning while I was getting ready for school. He told me that the leader of Akatsuki—known solely as 'Leader'—is planning something with certain members. These members include the nameless Anonymous, Deidara the Bomber, and Hidan; also known as Reaper and his partner Kakuzu the Gambler." The blonde shifted in his seat, looking at Kakashi briefly before continuing. "The fact that the other members—Floral, Shark, and Cannibal—means that he doesn't hold trust for his closest members anymore."

Zabuza frowned as he took a seat next to Anko, glancing at her for a moment while she grinned before looking back at Naruto. "If he doesn't trust his closest members anymore, does that mean he suspects a traitor?"

"Ever since Sasori left them, of course he suspects a traitor. Especially when Red Dessert joined us." Shikamaru spoke then, looking at Zabuza with a narrowed gaze. "He's not exactly thrilled about the fact that one of his strongest men left him to join the gang that they're planning the revolution on, you know."

"We know that, squirt." Anko spoke up, leaning forward to look at them all critically. "What we don't know is our plan of action."

"We can't take any action until they show they're being hostile towards us." Sakura poke up then, looking at the gym teacher. "It's the rules of the road there. Any gang who doesn't show any hostilities towards another gang cannot be attacked. They've only been hired, and so that isn't a show of hostilities. The day one of them flat out attacks one of our members and hurts them is the day we can get to them and make sure they never do that again." Anko scowled and Sakura shrugged a little. "Can't help facts."

"What can those outside of Konoha high do to help?" Temari asked then, looking at Naruto. "I see a lot of people at my job; I've seen Kisame walking down with Reaper once or twice to get some ramen." She snorted as Naruto's face relaxed at the mention of ramen before she smacked him over the head. "Focus ya goof!"

"Sorry, sorry." The blonde sighed, running his fingers through his hair before looking at Temari for a moment.

"Do what Flirt does."

"I'm sorry; I ain't giving people lap dances."

"OI!" A very indignant Ino cried out from her side of the stage with Chouji, who just shook his head and continued to eat a bag of chips that he had bought once the caf had opened.

"Not like that, Temari; just pull information out of them somehow. Neither Reaper nor Gambler knows who's in the gang other than myself and Sasuke." He smirked. "If you can just get some information out of him of what they're doing with the Leader, or even just a visual description of Leader...That's all I can ask for." He looked at the eldest sibling as she thought for a moment before she nodded, smirking and sitting back. Naruto then glanced over to Genma and Hayate.

"You guys are the best at eavesdropping; I know you are." He added as the two of them opened their mouths to deny this. "I've seen you listening in on Tsunade and Shizune before." Genma smirked, scratching the back of his head and Hayate coughed into his fist a little forcefully. "So if you ever get into the same room as a member of that gang...Or even a spy for that gang, I want you to listen in on them...Hard." The Biology and Health teachers nodded, before the leader of Bijuu turned to look at the Honoured Member.

"Chidori." The Uchiha looked over at him, raising an eyebrow inquisitively, and Naruto waved him over. "I need you to stick around with the former Oto members. Think you can handle that?"

"They can stay at my place." Sasuke mumbled, looking at him quietly. "Though they are not allowed in Itachi's room. I'm doing research in there." He looked over at Kakashi then, and the Hatake nodded, smirking at him beneath his mask before the bell rang. Sasuke they turned away, grabbing his bag and shoving his sketchpad into it, jumping from the stage and walking towards his first class. Kakashi nodded to Naruto, walking after him with Sakura and Kiba at their heels, before the blonde sighed, running a hand down his face. Temari looked at him with a raised eyebrow, glancing over at Neji as he walked over, kneeling beside the blonde.

"Naruto are you alright?"

"I've so been better." Naruto mumbled, looking at the Hyuuga between his fingers, smiling a little bitterly. "I've just found out something that could so screw around with my life in general...So I'm a little stressed out."

"Is it Akatsuki?"

"You know? I wish it was."

* * *

Kakashi looked out at his class as they wrote down the assignment, looking up at him oddly once in a while because he had entered the classroom just when Sasuke had; it was weird seeing their teacher on time for so many days. Even early, if what Sasuke told them was true; that he had been in the cafeteria before the Uchiha had. And Sasuke had a habit of coming into the school pretty early because of the distance he lived at.

The silver haired man sighed a little as he looked at his Icha Icha Tactics, frowning a little at the book before turning his head towards a window where he could look out at the shining day outside, the rain from the days before having become just puddles on the sidewalk and wet marshes in the fields of grass. He leaned back against the chalkboard, making sure to keep his head and hair out of the way of the instructions written there as he closed his eyes—though the students could only see one eye—as he thought to himself.

When he had woken up to see Naruto in the bed with him, he had, at first, freaked out like any normal man would. And then he calmed down when he recognized the snoring and had poked Naruto awake to ask what the hell he was doing in his bed. Naruto had mumbled something about a bad dream and then something else about some bad news, and the guardian had stared at him for a few minutes before he let him sleep in the bed, falling back asleep himself.

The alarm clock then woke both sleepers, and Kakashi swore to any god under the sun—both Christian and Buddhist—that he was going to kill the infernal thing and send it to the deepest bowels of hell.

After that he had sent Naruto off to school to walk since Kakashi still had to have his morning cup of coffee and the machine decided to malfunction that morning. When asked why he didn't use the faculty room's coffee machine, Kakashi just hissed and Naruto remembered once more that his guardian was _not_ a morning person.

It was then that Kakashi was plagued with a memory of his own; something that he didn't let happen to him a lot. It usually only happened if he was in a foul mood and he wasn't going to get out of that foul mood for a while.

The memory was a simple one; they were in the city that Kakashi lived in now, and it was the first time they had met. Kakashi was still a very serious man, having just joined the elite, structured and uniformed gang called ANBU; a gang of small members, but only the strongest and most intelligent got into it. His best friend Obito had been downright jealous of the other man, and hadn't been speaking to him the entire day; while Rin, who was usually the one to placate them when it came to situations like this, was trying to talk to Obito and tell him that Kakashi only got into the gang because he was a very good friend of the leader, while Kakashi had been trying on his uniform, looking at his tattoo with a sense of pride.

The day had passed and that night was the first night Kakashi had been included in the meetings of ANBU with the leader; a young man that was stern but knew Kakashi well and saw potential in the young man.

For a novice, he was treated with respect and he was given a mission right off the bat; a lowly mission in his mind but the leader spoke as if it were a mission never to be conversed with those outside of ANBU. Kakashi was going to become the bodyguard of a young man named Arashi Uzumaki; a scientist in the scientific gang called ROOT. He was the assistant of Masashi Sarutobi; a wise old man called the Professor who watched over all the different experiments being handled in ROOT. The fact that a scientist that Kakashi had heard about briefly in the papers needed a bodyguard was a big deal then, and Kakashi took the mission immediately, swearing to secrecy. He was then assigned a partner; a young boy of around fourteen years old named Itachi Uchiha. He was considered a genius in the ranks, and he had been watching ROOT since he had first joined ANBU.

The two of them had been assigned to a small house near the underground headquarters and were ordered to meet with Arashi the next day before they were dismissed. Kakashi had followed Itachi silently, when the younger male had looked up at him and smiled a little.

_"Hopefully they won't ruin you, either."

* * *

_Naruto looked over at Genma as he stood behind his desk, writing down the work that they were doing this class when the brown haired male suddenly looked over at him, raising an eyebrow a little and cocking his head to the side. The blonde shook his head, smiling a little before he went back to the work they had been assigned, placing a hand to his head as he heard Kyuubi mumbled curses and swears under his breath; could almost feel the fox pacing back and forth. 'Could you calm down? I'm trying to work here.'

_**Sorry brat. It's just that these surges of energy I'm feeling are just going to get stronger the more we ignore them. I think you need to talk to Kakashi about these. He was in ANBU; he might know what's going on.**_

'I doubt ANBU had anything to do with you. Now shut up and help me figure this out.

_**Dammit kit...

* * *

**_Asuma looked at his students with an air of boredom as he leaned against the wall of the side of the classroom, watching as Sasuke and Shikamaru, who were once again in his Math class, spoke together in quiet voices; their work pushed to the corner of their desks because as usual they were done everything. It was second period now; things were becoming clockwork already to the Math teacher but Asuma knew something big was going on in the world of the city's gangs. Kakashi, Anko, Gai, Hayate and Genma had all rejoined Bijuu along with Zabuza, and Kurenai kept asking him if he was going to, because she wanted to. For whatever reason the retired gang members-made-teachers were going back to a life that they had left so that they could live peacefully.

'It must deal with the fact that Itachi was killed last year.' He thought, frowning a little and looking at the pack of cigarettes in his front pocket, before he walked out of the classroom, not noting when Sasuke's eyes looked up at him with narrowed red eyes.

He walked across the hall where Kurenai was just wrapping up a lesson in her geography, giving the day's assignment to the students before she looked up with red eyes towards him, cocking her head to the side as her black hair fell in front of her face slightly. The woman excused herself silently, walking outside her classroom and shutting the door, leaning against it. "Something wrong, Asuma? Is it Sasuke?"

"No, I'm just thinking about the teachers I saw with the kids before school started." Asuma said, looking away from her down the hall to make sure no one was listening to their conversation. Kurenai pursed her lips as she stared at him, waiting for him to continue. "I'm thinking we should stay out of it. Especially you in your condition..."

"Just because I'm pregnant Asuma, doesn't mean I can't take care of myself and the kids that I hold precious. Hinata's already hospitalized." She frowned, looking to the side. "I don't want anything to happen to Kiba or Shino."

"Those kids can take care of themselves." Asuma said, looking at her with a smile. "I have trust in Chouji, Shikamaru and Ino. Hinata was sick. It didn't have anything to do with gangs."

"Really Asuma, you are behind." Kurenai said suddenly, smirking a bit. Asuma blinked, looking at her in confusion and she shook her head. "Her illness is because of gangs. I don't understand it all yet, but I know it's because of gangs. I can tell." The dark haired woman sighed, fisting her hands in front of her. "I'm just worried...I've been hearing a lot of rumours, especially from Sasori..."

"Just because he's a part of it doesn't mean he's clued in to a lot of things."

"He was a spy you know." Kurenai sighed a little. "He gave the information on Akatsuki to Naruto and the others...Apparently the Leader is planning a revolution." She frowned a bit as Asuma narrowed his eyes.

"There hasn't been a revolution for at least ten years...And the last time we had one...ANBU was still in tact."

"And so was ROOT." Asuma then paused, looking over his shoulder to see Sasuke walking out of the classroom, pausing when he saw the teacher looking at him. "Where do you think you're going?"

"I'm done the assignment so I thought it appropriate to relieve my bladder. Unless you want a nice little puddle on your classroom floor, I'll be leaving." He nodded to them, and Asuma sighed a little, watching him before looking back at Kurenai, who was watching him quietly.

"What?"

"Sharingan had been activated...They were just fading when he first looked at you." She frowned a little. "Uchiha sort of bothers me..."

"He gives everyone a bad vibe."

* * *

Sasuke entered the bathroom, closing it quietly before he narrowed his eyes, slamming his hand against the closest stall wall, walking over to the mirrors and glaring at his reflection. "ROOT. ANBU. Revolution. What does it all have to do with Aniki's computer? I know it has to do with something...But what?"

* * *

That lunch period Sasuke was sore from gym and Naruto was bored to tears from his class previous. The two of them met at the cafeteria before going to the stage where the others were sitting, yet again joined by Temari and a few of the teachers; this time Sasori and Jiraiya amongst them. "Gamabunta what're you doing here?"

"I'm good at collecting information on forbidden things thought I could be some help." The white haired man said, grinning a little. "That okay with you, Kyuubi?"

"Well yeah...But still. You've been retired for years."

"Eh, I'm still young."

"You're in your fifties."

"Like I said, I'm still young." The blonde rolled his eyes, smirking before looking over at Sasori, who shrugged simply. "He's here because I've decided to call him Sabaku the fourth."

"What?"

"He's going to be living with his cousins now, and he's going to be collecting information as well. He had been a spy, and he still keeps in contact with Deidara. He'll just tell the blonde that he's a spy for Akatsuki, and Bomber will believe him in a flash."

"That is so pathetic of the blondie." Kankuro mumbled, shaking his head as he chewed on a slice of pizza he had grabbed from the caf. He offered his second slice to Naruto who took it, pulling Sasuke to sit next to him as he continued the conversation. "But it'll work, overall. Poor Deidara..."

"He's a good kid," Sasori said, looking at them. "But he's easily fooled, and very emotional." He shrugged a little. "He trusts me with his life." Naruto smirked a little, nodding.

"We'll use that to our advantage, then." He then turned to look at Shikamaru and Sakura who were muttering under their breaths, looking over at Sasuke once in a while. He rose an eyebrow at them, clearing his throat and the two looked at him with an innocent expression on their faces. "Why do you keep looking at Sasuke?"

"We need to talk to him."

"It's about his research."

"We have some stuff that'll help him continue it." Sasuke nodded, standing up and Naruto's eyes narrowed as his boyfriend left his side, sitting with the other two and talking to them quietly. He narrowed his eyes before he felt someone sit next to him, and turned to see Gaara sitting there, looking at him quietly.

"One needs to have their space...And then one also needs to keep loved ones out so they are not hurt in the end." He said softly and Naruto frowned, looking away.

"Stop making sense."


	9. Repetitiveness

A/N: HEY ALL! Yes I'm late. SORRY! And yes it's a little short; only two pages so. But anyhow; I hope you enjoy this! It's plot time. And more characters are involved. Enjoy.

Disclaimer: Naruto and Co. belong to Masashi Kishimoto.

* * *

Sasuke looked at Shikamaru and Sakura for a moment, narrowing his eyes a little as he shuffled his stuff around him; blocking his face from Naruto's view so he wouldn't be able to read his lips like he knew the blonde was prone on doing when it concerned him. It was a habit of Naruto's he had learned about over the summer...It grew a little annoying after a while. "What did you find out?" He murmured; glancing carefully around at the other members sitting around them; Neji looking at him quietly with slightly narrowed eyes, Ino staring at what seemed to be Chouji eating his food in a fascinating fashion but really sneaking glances over at them. It felt as if they were suddenly in the spotlight, and it made the Uchiha fairly uncomfortable. 

"We found out that after 'Aniki', that his passwords were 'Mikoto' and 'Fugaku'." Shikamaru mumbled softly, looking at him with bored looking grey eyes-but if one looked carefully enough they would see that they were really inquisitive and slightly distant, as if as he spoke, he was trying to think of what the next steps he had to take would be. "After that it's a series of letter passwords; so even though he said he had five passwords, in reality he has more. It's just the total amount of words are five."

"Aniki liked word games." Sasuke shrugged his shoulders slightly. "He did the crosswords in the newspaper every Saturday morning before I woke up. It annoyed me when I could see it was already done before I could even get to look at it."

"Got any idea what he would've used for this word game of his?" Sakura asked then, looking at him with a questioning gaze. "He wanted you to figure this out one day, Sasuke. He made it harder or impossible for others to figure out his passwords; he would've made them blatantly obvious for you because you were his little brother and knew him best." Sasuke frowned, nodding a little as he curled up a little in his seat, fidgeting with his hands as he thought, staring at the hardwood in front of him.

"'Aniki', 'Mikoto', Fugaku'..." He paused for a moment, closing his eyes. "Simplicity. Traditional. Repetitive..." His eyes widened a little. "Are you sure it was five passwords?" He asked suddenly. Shikamaru blinked, looking at him with confused eyes, and Sasuke glanced at him. "Are you SURE it was five passwords?"

"I...Think..."

"Nara I need you to be definite here think for a moment would you!? I can't have 'I think' as an answer! This computer holds information that would make your dead grandmother's hair grey faster than it should have when she was younger."

"My grandmother was born with grey hair."

"I _know_ that." Sasuke hissed, narrowing his eyes; sharingan summoned. Shikamaru bit back a gasp, sliding back from him a little bit; Sakura, though, placed her hand softly on his arm, and his gaze shifted to her, still glaring. "What is it?"

"We know it's important, Sasuke. Let him think; you're angry eyes won't calm him. And you don't want to involve Naruto do you?" She indirectly shifted her eyes in the blonde's direction, smiling briefly at the Uzumaki as he glanced at her warily before she turned her gaze back to him. "So breathe."

Sasuke stared at her for a moment longer, before closing his eyes, taking in a deep breath and slowly letting it out; his eyes fading to black as he opened his eyes. He looked at Shikamaru who was staring at him warily, before he sighed. "Do you know?" He asked gently then; calmer than before. Shikamaru looked at him for a moment longer before he shifted to kneel on one knee, placing the tips of his fingers together in a sign of concentration, eyes closed. The two watched him for a long moment; seconds seemingly dragging into forever before the Nara opened his eyes again and looked at him.

"...There are six." He said softly. "How'd you know I miscalculated?"

"Because I know the last passwords."

* * *

The rest of the day was a confusing blur, and Naruto didn't know what to do with himself when Sasuke blew him off at the end of the day, kissing his cheek before walking down the sidewalk with Ino and Sakura; the blonde talking about something while the pinkette took his hand, squeezing it in comfort as he sighed a little; looking in pain or something. He had fidgeted on the sidewalk for a moment before he turned in the opposite direction, walking towards home.

He had taken a sudden detour, though, when he saw Neji sitting on the curb, looking at the ground, and he sat down next to the brunette, looking at him with confused, concerned blue eyes. "What's up with you?" He asked, nudging his shoulder slightly with his own broader shoulder. The Hyuuga glanced at him, before shrugging a shoulder indifferently, turning his pale gaze back to the ground. Naruto frowned a little, nudging him again and Neji turned to look at him. "I asked what's up with you. Don't shrug at me again; I want something vocal."

"Life's out to screw my family over, what else is new?" Neji simply replied back; Naruto didn't say anything, knowing his messed up the Hyuuga family truly was before he stood, dragging Neji up with him. "Naruto what are you doing? Let go of me." He half heartedly tried to get his arm out of the older blonde's grasp but Naruto wouldn't let go, grinning at him. The Hyuuga gave up after a few minutes of trying to get Naruto to let go of him as the blonde dragged him off in the direction of his home, simply walking with Naruto; sighing in defeat. Naruto let go of him then, giving him one look that said 'if you try to bolt from here you'll regret it immensely'. He took the hint, staying with him as he was lead to the house of the leader of Bijuu.

To see the small house where Kakashi Hatake and Naruto Uzumaki lived in always made Neji feel awkward, because Naruto acted as if he lived in a setting similar to Neji; sometimes he felt like Naruto should've lived in a better, grander sort of setting, though he didn't understand why. Naruto didn't have a paying job and Kakashi had them both living off of a teacher's salary. They weren't going to live luxuriously.

"Naruto, would you mind explaining why I'm at your house?"

"Because beating off steam is the best way to get rid of stress in my opinion." The blonde stated simply, as if stating a fact or the weather; lightly, without so much as any thought to the meaning of the words. Just words he randomly spat out to answer him. It was interesting to hear such profound words in such a simplistic manner. He smiled a little, and the blonde noticed, grinning at him brightly before they both stepped into the house, Naruto slipping off his sneakers and Neji following suit before they both threw their backpacks near the stairs, climbing up the stairs to Naruto's room like two normal teenage friends would usually do when they hung out after school.

Once the door was closed, Naruto grabbed his roll of bandages, wrapping them around his hands and knuckles before holding it out for Neji. Neji took it silently, watching as the blonde moved things around his room to make room for the impromptu spar they were about to share; they hadn't trained together in over a year, since Sasuke was the one Naruto trained with now because he was closer to his amount of strength than the Hyuuga was. When he placed the roll on his dresser, he turned to see Naruto stretching, indicating with his eyes a familiar hair tie that Neji had forgotten there the last time they had sparred before.

Once sufficiently tying his long hair back, he turned to Naruto again, shifting into a different, lower stance than Naruto did; the blonde separating his feet to widen his center, bringing up to fists in front of him so that he could defend and attack in succession. Of course, the blonde knew this tactic was meaningless and lost for this spar, but he would try anyhow.

Neji smirked as he loved his arms in front of him, palms out as his eyes narrowed a little; veins tensing around the pale eyes as he stared at the blonde. "It's been forever since we fought."

"We're both pissed at the world; why not take it out on each other? Anger ADORES company, after all." He said, shrugging his shoulders as he started to bob up and down slightly on the balls of his feet; his feet shifting in swift movements before the blonde crouched a little in a stance that Neji didn't recognize. "Let's see if you can keep up."

"Hn,"

As soon as he murmured that, Naruto had rushed up at him, throwing a fist out while curling to protect his torso. Neji ducked from the punch, bending back to implant a hand on the ground while lifting his leg, swiftly delivering a high kick to Naruto's head which was avoided. His leg was caught and he was dragged up into the air where he took the moment to shove both palms into Naruto's stomach, pushing himself against him and tearing his leg out of his hold, propelling himself away from the blonde. He landed on the bed softly, jumping off of it before he twisted around just in time to catch Naruto's arm in a scissor hold between his arms, grabbing the arm and twisting him to throw him over his shoulder.

Naruto wouldn't allow that, though, placing a hand on his shoulder and pulling back just as Neji pulled him forward. There was a distinctive popping noise and his arm slipped out of Neji's hold loosely, handing from his side limply before a moment before Naruto grabbed his arm and seemed to pop it back into the his shoulder joint after having purposely dislocating it. "That's new," Neji mumbled and Naruto grinned as they had a momentary pause before Neji turned swiftly, bending down into the crouch that all Hyuugas stood in, his arms positioned differently. "Let's see how well you do now..."

"Love it when you're serious."

"I know."

* * *

He looked out his window in the car at the hospital from his place in the parking lot; the car idling as he idled inside, wondering if he should go inside or not. On the one hand, Kakashi knew that if he didn't visit Iruka the nurses would suspect that something wrong had happened; the nurses knew him by name now, after all. On the other hand, he had to get home so that he could mull over the things that were happening as of recently.

He sighed, shifting the gear out of park and started towards the highway, driving towards the abandoned part of the city as he thought to himself. Once he made it there, he cut the engine off, climbing out of his car and walking down the familiar sidewalks, looking around it curiously.

No one had ever questioned why this section of town had been abandoned years ago; it was just assumed it was a dangerous area that flooded a lot. And it did flood a lot, since it was near the waterfront; but that was not the real reason why it had been abandoned.

Stopping in front of a small building that looked more insignificant than any other building in the area, Kakashi paused, looking at its cracked and broken windows; at the dust layering the inside. He could smell, through his mask, the musky, mouldy smell of rotting wood inside, and he pushed away the unpleasant feeling as he walked inside, pushing the door carefully on its rusted, creaky hinges.

He looked around the sparse room, smiling a little as his mind was filled with memories when this place had been in it's finest moments of glory; the half of the city that was dedicated to science research. A respectable part of town where crime was low, thanks to those who watched after the place. He walked down a hallway, stopping by a plain, boring wall. He looked at the wall, and if he were a normal person would've thought nothing special about it. But he pushed on it lightly and it slide in and sideways as he did so, revealing a staircase. He laughed slightly at the stairs, seeing them in perfect condition before he made his way downstairs, running a hand along the cement wall.

Everything was concrete and prison-looking as he made his way downstairs; fluorescent lights that haven't an off switch glowing near his feet giving the only light to the place. He finally made it to the ground floor and looked around the familiar meeting room, seeing older posters, the billboard with the week's notice, and the table that they all stood around as they spoke to each other.

Underground headquarters of ANBU.

10 years ago there had been a massive revolution that had started because an opposing gang—the beginnings of Akatsuki—had been jealous of the scientific expertise that was going on in ROOT and the amount of protection ANBU was giving them. Akatsuki was a nameless gang at the time, with weak, uncaring members who didn't want to fight but did because of their envy. It had escalated until all the gangs were included; all of them gathered in this part of the city, away from pedestrians. Kakashi had seen a lot of people fall down, dead, that day and he didn't think he'd ever stop having the nightmares of their dead eyes as he walked over their corpses during the night's body count; he just stopped having the proper reactions.

Finally, a young boy with promise had been pulled into the scene and he had been the nameless gang's last resort; he blew up everything in sight, killing off half of ANBU, ROOT; the scientists and the guards and the experiments. He killed off almost all of the other gangs, only a few members surviving; he killed off his own allies, all the while laughing his childish, pre-teen laugh; his smile dangerously close to looking almost psychotic in a way. The gore had finally ceased and Kakashi—one of the few survivors of that horror—looked out over the sea of bodies as few people struggled to their feet; Tsunade, Jiraiya, Orochimaru, Asuma, Kurenai, Anko, Hayate, Genma, and two younger people he didn't recognize; one was just a boy, so young that it should've been illegal for him to be anywhere near the city. But his eyes were blank and grey, and he was clutching his throat as it bled profusely.

And then the rubble next to him had been shifted as Itachi Uchiha sat up, spitting out blood as he struggled to his feet, ignoring the hand Kakashi offered him. He looked around with eyes that said that he didn't really feel affected by the sight in front of him, before turning shockingly red eyes at him, and a small smile tilted the corner of his lips upwards as he said only one thing:

_It looks like things will be different now, Kakashi-san. Escape while you can. _

Kakashi shook his head a little, a hand to his temple as he walked down a hallway of the underground headquarters, sliding open a Japanese-styled door as he did so as he stepped into another part of the building; a room with large containers, broken glass and the smell of rotting flesh and acid filling his nose from underneath his mask. He heard something crack from near the door and spun around—crouching in a fighting position he hadn't been in for years—when he noticed the man standing there, looking at him calmly.

He relaxed, nodding a little in respect as he narrowed his blue eye at him questioningly. "...Masashi Sarutobi." He said softly. "The Professor. What are you doing in this old building?"

"I would like to ask you the same thing, Kakashi." Sarutobi said, his gravely voice low and contemplating as he walked around the shattered glass on the ground, glancing at long-spilled chemicals that had eaten through the floor during the years they had been active; all chemicals in the room were now effectively dead and non-reactive, like noble gases. "You have not stepped foot in the old city since ten years ago when ANBU and ROOT unquestionably broke apart, after the bloodshed of young Deidara." Kakashi winced a little and the old bookstore owner seemed to smile at him in empathy. "What brings you back to this place that has lacked life for those ten years?"

"...There's another revolution happening, and the causers are Akatsuki again. Except this time...They have stronger members that enjoy fighting, and they just want the territory. No jealousy; they just want the threats taken care of quickly before they can take over the city." Kakashi crossed his arms, looking down at their feet as he thought. "Ever since Itachi Uchiha was killed, they've been planning this. It was like everything that had been holding them back was suddenly gone, and they had free reign to what they want to do. At least...That's the theory that most of the kids in Bijuu have." Kakashi looked to the side then, scowling under his mask. "I think I know differently, though..." He then glanced at Sarutobi to see him looking grave, and his frown turned deeper. "I'm right...Aren't I?"

"I am afraid so."

* * *

Sasuke closed his apartment door quietly, looking up to see Shikamaru at his table drinking a glass of orange juice. He didn't even ask how the hacker had gotten inside his apartment before him; he probably picked the lock for all he knew. He just nodded to the brunette and dropped his back by the door, shedding himself of his jacket and slipping off his shoes before he walked towards Itachi's room. As he walked, he glanced out of the corner of his eye to see three sleeping figures around his couch; Tayuya, Sakon and Ukon all slept peacefully in the living room space, taking up as little room as possible. The fourth member—Kimimaro Kaguya—was still hospitalized and so wouldn't be joining them until he woke up.

He pushed his brother's door closed quietly, walking to his computer and sitting into the chair, turning it on as he did so; he heard the door open quietly and saw from the corner of his eye Shikamaru walk in with his cup of orange juice, another glass of water in his other hand as he placed it beside the keyboard. Sasuke nodded to him quietly, still deciding not to be verbal as the computer turned on before he logged into 'Sharingan'. He then started to go through the order of the passwords, and so he finally had to speak.

"First it is 'Aniki'." He said, glancing back at Shikamaru as he started to type. "And then it is 'Mikoto', right?" The Nara nodded, and Sasuke typed it in. "Then 'Fugaku'." He saw the other boy nod though Sasuke didn't need him to as he typed it in. Then came the harder part, but Sasuke already knew what to do.

"R." He typed it in, and the next password pop-up came up. "E." He entered and the same thing happened. "A." Enter. Pop-up. "D." Enter. Pop-up. "Y." Enter. Pop-up. "S." Enter. Pop-up. "E." Enter and pop-up. "T." Enter; pop-up. "G." Shikamaru was staring at him with interested eyes, comprehension dawning on his face as he was spelling out a familiar, old phrase that hadn't been spoken in over a year. "O."

He clicked enter once more, and then 'Ready, Set, Go' appeared in front of him for a moment before the computer logged on and a video pop-up appeared. Sasuke didn't even noticed Shikamaru leave the room as Itachi's face appeared on there, smiling in the way that Sasuke had remembered too vaguely for his photographic mind to comprehend.

"Hey otouto! Great job figuring out the passwords; I changed them when I knew something was going on so you knew how to get in. It would be impossible for other people to log in since they don't know me like you know me." The figure on the screen sighed before he opened his eyes and looked straight at Sasuke seemingly; as if he were on webcam in another house somewhere, just hiding out instead of dead. "It's time for me to give you another hint then, so I will. There are only three more passwords, and they all have something to do with you. Otouto you have three names. Figure the order out from important to trivial." He then smiled and waved and the video clicked itself out before another password pop-up appeared. Shikamaru came back in then, leaning over his shoulder.

"You have three names?" Shikamaru asked and Sasuke shrugged his shoulder.

"My first, middle and last name." He said, glancing at him. "Sasuke Theodore Uchiha. The 'Theodore' in from my mother's side; her father." Shikamaru nodded, before he glanced at him again. "And I think I understand what he means by 'important to trivial'." He said, smirking before he started to type again.

"Surname, Given name, Middle name." He said as he typed in 'Uchiha' then 'Sasuke' and finally 'Theodore'. It all clicked in and Sasuke had free reign on the computer. "Itachi liked simplicity, traditional and repetitiveness. The simplicity was 'Aniki'. The traditional was 'Mikoto' and 'Fugaku' because they were his parents, and some traditional passwords are names of important people. The repetitiveness was 'Ready, Set, Go' because we always said it at the beginning of a day or when we were doing something important together."

"Then what's with your names?"

"Traditional." Sasuke said, looking at him. "I thought you were a genius."

"Itachi's mind has always slipped past me." Shikamaru stated simply, looking at the computer again. "You figured out the passwords pretty much by yourself...But there will be other things that'll have hyped up security."

"Probably a password on the one file I need." Sasuke said gently. "Or something of the sort."

"Itachi liked passwords." Shikamaru mumbled, sitting on the bed again as he sipped at his orange juice; Sasuke took the water for the first time, sipping it quietly as he looked at the computer in contemplation. The Nara then sighed, looking at him quietly. "I think you should get your homework done; I'll see what's on the computer. I won't read anything like you made me swear, but I'll check what might have passwords and what might not."

Sasuke thought for a moment, before he nodded and stood, turning to step away. He then paused, looking at Shikamaru as he sat in the chair, and he placed a hand on the back of the chair, causing Shikamaru to look at him. "Traditional: Naruto." He said simply, and Shikamaru seemed to understand before Sasuke left the room to go do his homework in the kitchen and make dinner for his new house guests and him.

* * *

The Hyuuga and Uzumaki were on opposite sides of the room, panting as pieces of hair fell into Neji's vision and the bandages around Naruto's hands were loose and falling off. Both of them had a sufficient amount of sore spots, but both of them were smiling as they straightened into relaxed positions, walking over to each other carefully before Neji grinned, and pushed Naruto's shoulder lightly as the blonde laughed. The two of them then fell simultaneously to the floor; Naruto crossing his legs Indian style and Neji sitting on his legs quietly like he had been trained to.

"That was actually very relaxing." Neji commented after a moment of silence, unwrapping the bandages around his knuckles and hands as Naruto nodded, doing the same. "Beating off steam really does relax your mind."

"What, did you think meditation was the answer to everything? That's a hippy's state of mind, Byakugen!" Naruto joked, nudging his shoulder lightly. He blinked, though, noticing that Neji had stilled at the mention of his gang name. Naruto frowned, looking at him quietly. "What's wrong?"

"...It's something with my family." Neji mumbled after a moment, staring at the ground. "I just learned that everything I've ever been taught is a lie...And that Hinata is dying because of it." Naruto's eyes widened and he stared at the Hyuuga male as he turned his pale eyes to look at him quietly. "I don't think she's getting better, Naruto. I think she's actually dying. And I don't think she'll pull out of this..."

The blonde didn't know what to say at that moment; and truthfully he couldn't say anything. He couldn't say anything because he had shifted his eyes from Neji's face and saw something in the reflection of the window that made him start screaming.

Himself.

* * *

"Who's looking after the bookstore?" Kakashi asked Sarutobi as they left the building, walking towards the English teacher's car. The older man smiled a little, and the silver haired male blinked, raising his only visible eyebrow as Sarutobi smiled up at him.

"Shino's looking over it right now with the assistance of my grandson." He said softly. Kakashi's eyes narrowed then, and Sarutobi looked at him curiously. "Is that not appropriate?"

"You left Shino Aburame in charge of that place?" Kakashi mumbled quietly and Sarutobi nodded once. "You're a fool, sir."

"I may be a fool in many ways, but how am I a fool in this sense?"

"...Shino Aburame. Think of his surname, and I'm sure it will come to you." Kakashi mumbled, looking at him with silent eyes. Sarutobi stared at him for a long moment, before his eyes widened and Kakashi nodded. "His father is a part of an organization of spies, Sarutobi. It's how we get our gear in Bijuu. But his father has given him orders to watch over Sasuke Uchiha since he moved into this town, since he's known who he was as soon as he moved here with his brother. To let his son into that place, where it tells secrets that shouldn't be told..."

"He only thinks it a bookstore."

"When Hidan Morte visits, he won't think it is." Kakashi hissed then. "And Hidan Morte will visit it soon."


	10. Falling Apart

A/N: Just so you guys didn't die from lack of updates again, and with curiousity as to what the HELL went on last chapter. Enjoy this one! We're getting somewhere finally, eh? There will be action soon, don't worry. I won't leave it all to this; something will happen next chapter. Promise! _(smiles)_ Anyhow, hope you enjoy this! Seems like life is shitting on everyone's faces. Sucks, eh?

Disclaimer: Naruto and Co. belong to Masashi Kishimoto.

* * *

Naruto had scrambled back into the wall, eyes fixed to the window when Neji stepped in front of him, looking at him with wide, freaked out eyes and he instantly silenced, panting heavily to himself as he looked at the floor, avoiding the Hyuuga's gaze. "What the hell are you screaming at, Naruto?" He asked, shaking his shoulder lightly. "You scared the crap out of me just then. Did you see someone at the window or something?" 

Naruto shook his head, squeezing his eyes shut and pressing the heel of his right hand against his right eye, rubbing it as he sat up a little. He felt Neji shift back to accommodate his movement, but he knew the Hyuuga didn't go too far away. After a moment he dropped his hand, blinking a little before glancing at the mirror beside him that Kakashi had moved into his room over the summer, and bit back a yell of surprise; his eyes were still the same bloody red as they had been when he looked into the mirror with cat slits instead of normal pupils. Kyuubi stared back at him, yet he wasn't in control.

Neji looked into the mirror as well and Naruto saw through the mirror the brunette jump with his mouth agape. He looked at Naruto, yet Naruto continued to look at the glass with confused and slightly scared eyes. "Naruto why do you have red eyes? Is Kyuubi trying to take over?" Neji asked, and Naruto held up a hand to tell him to quiet as he closed his eyes, mentally calling for the fox demon in his head.

'Kyuubi explain this!' His mental image materialized in his mind and he walked down the halls of his memories, looking at the 'door' that say 'Italy' on it wide open. He glanced inside, seeing a smiling blonde boy before he quickly walked past it, stopping in front of the redheaded man as he stared down at him with a contemplating expression on his face. "I want to know what the hell is going on with me right now. Why do I have red eyes? Why do I have your face?"

"It's my upgrade." Kyuubi said then and Naruto blanched. "I've gained information from a hidden database that this upgrade is what they call the 'Final Stage'. I don't know too much on it...But I'm taking over you mentally and physically." The red eyed demon looked away, pacing in front of him as he thought and spoke aloud. "I'm loosing control of the things I've took care of so that you could grow up 'normally'; things you've forgotten. I'm also loosing control of my control that keeps me out of your life 24/7; those times I'm gone from your conscious because I want to give you your privacy, since all teenagers, males and females, deserve their privacy and I'm not going to basically 'spy' on those moments like a nosy parent." He ran thin fingers through his thick hair, pausing in his step and staring at the ground. "...You're probably going to phase in and out from blue eyes to red eyes for a while. I'll pull myself back right now, but...Just so you know and don't freak out again."

"...Right." Naruto mumbled, looking away from the man before his mental self disappeared and he regained consciousness, Neji staring at him, fidgeting with the hem of his shirt. The blonde glanced at him, and he saw the Hyuuga's face relax. He glanced at the mirror and saw blue eyes staring at him again, before he smiled a little timidly at Neji, looking at him again.

"Looks like we both have our own problems, eh?" He asked, and Neji laughed a little shakily, not really finding it funny but kind of a strange thing to say in a situation like this that made it funny all the same. Naruto smiled a bit before they both stood up, and Naruto ran a shaky hand through his hair. "...Let's get something to eat."

"Yeah..."

* * *

Shino bowed slightly to the last customer as they walked out before pushing his sunglasses up, looking around the bookstore quietly. Konohamaru was in the back stacking books in their proper shelves, a small woman who had come in the store an hour ago still going through the cooking books at her own leisure. The store was calm and quiet as always, with the exception of Sasuke not being there that day; but today was his one day off from the week, so the store could survive without him for a little while.

Sighing, he moved from the cashier, going into the staff room and walking to the coffee machine, pressing a button to start a pot of coffee when he heard the bell ring outside to indicate a new customer coming in. The Aburame sighed quietly to himself, walking back out and pausing in his step as his covered eyes landed on a platinum blonde haired man with brown eyes and a slight smile on his face; he dressed formally with a black turtle neck and dark brown slacks with boots that looked like dress shoes on his feet; a leather trench coat was slung over his arm, and on his left index finger was a ring. The green eyes behind the sunglasses narrowed a fraction. 'Akatsuki, Hidan Morte.' He thought, making his way carefully towards him. Hidan looked over at him, his smile turning friendly, though Shino didn't relax. 'He doesn't know who's in Bijuu other than Sasuke and Naruto. I'm safe.' He thought, stopping in front of him and looking at him, only slightly inclining his eyes to look into his eyes.

"Good afternoon, sir," Shino spoke formally, articulating his words as he always did; his voice was smooth, a slight tenor and he always spoke formally, since he had been raised that way. "How may I help you?"

"I'm just looking around." Hidan said, waving his hand to show that was indeed 'looking around'. "I heard that Sasuke Uchiha works here?"

"He's not in today; it's his day off." Konohamaru spoke then, and Shino sent him a glare he couldn't see, but should probably feel. Konohamaru either didn't care of his life, or was just completely oblivious, since he continued talking. "He should be in tomorrow."

"What's your affiliation with Sasuke?" Shino interrupted, frowning at Hidan a little. It was alright to act suspicious now, seeing as a man Sasuke had never met before was looking for him. Hidan glanced at him in a seemingly casual way, his lips turning downwards slightly at the suspicious air he felt around the brunette in front of him.

"Cousin." He said lightly, and Shino's eyes narrowed more. "Just wanted to see how he was doing after Itachi died." Shino nodded, playing along with him before he started to walk towards the counter; Hidan followed him. "Could you leave a message telling him I came by?" He asked, and Shino nodded again, pulling out a piece of stationary that the bookstore had ordered in a while ago. They had had copies of the stationary left and so kept one of the copies, using it to leave telephone messages and notices for the other employees. He made a show of writing down the message in his careful cursive and Hidan nodded, eyes flicking to the back room with a raised eyebrow. Shino glanced at him unseeingly, glancing back at the staff room where his coffee was brewing, before he stepped into his line of sight subtly, staring at him quietly.

"Is that all you wanted?"

"Um...Yes." Hidan stuttered, caught slightly off guard from Shino's unseen rudeness. He then nodded to Shino, stepping away from him quietly. "Thanks for doing this for me. I'll come see him tomorrow if I have the time."

"Alright. He'll have the message." Shino said then, and Hidan nodded once more, taking a quick glance at the staff room again before walking out of the store. Shino watched through the windows as he walked off, pulling on his coat before he turned to Konohamaru, who was staring at him in confusion.

"I'm taking my break; you look after the cashier." He said simply, before walking to the staff room again. His coffee was ready by the time he came back in, and he turned off the pot, pouring in a mug of some of the strong liquid before taking a sip of it black, looking around the room. He bit the inside of his cheek as he slowly walked around the room, trailing a hand along the wall as he did so. "He kept glancing back here..." He mumbled softly. "And this building hadn't always been a library...It was something a group of people had owned before they all disappeared and Sarutobi-san took over, turning it into Konoha Books..."

He stopped in front of a picture of Sarutobi with his son and grandson, the three males smiling widely; Asuma with an unlit cigarette in his mouth, a tiny Konohamaru holding a ball in his hands and the ever old Sarutobi smiling wisely at the picture; his eyes older than his body, and seemingly wiser and sadder. He frowned a little at the picture, wrapping both hands around his mug and holding it close to his chest before he lifted a hand again, lightly pressing against the picture. He stepped back, eyes wide behind his sunglasses as the wall pressed forward before sliding to the side and he stared at the stairs in front of him. He glanced back at the door, which he had closed, and then at the clock before he put down his mug of coffee and slowly started to climb down the staircase.

The stairs were cement, the walls flat and hard with florescent lights at the floor, giving a soft glowing path to whoever walked down the stairs. He walked down the flight for a seemingly long time before he stopped at the bottom, facing a door. He glanced up the stairs again, before taking the handle, twisting it and pushing it forwards as he stepped into the hidden room.

Inside was a computer with many different machines and screens around it; states of seemingly people's brain activity on the screen. He stared at the screens as he made his way slowly around the desk, looking down at a clipboard that was beside the keyboard. He picked it up quietly, looking at the list of names and states on the paper. He ran his finger down the list of names placed alphabetically, stopping right near the top as he trailed the hand up, finger paused at a name that he recognized.

'Aburame, Shibi Status: Failed'

He frowned deeply at the words, putting down the clipboard as he glanced at the screens again. The words were nonsensical for a moment until his eyes landed on a certain screen, and Shino removed his sunglasses to get a clearer view as his green eyes widened widely.

'Uzumaki, Naruto Status: Final Stage'

* * *

Sasuke finished the last of his Math homework just as Shikamaru came in with a piece of paper, holding it out for him. Sasuke took it quietly, taking one glance at it, before looking up at Shikamaru with a raised eyebrow. "There's only one file on the computer that has hyped security. It'll be the file that you need, in that case. Everything else was mission reports and information Itachi had to give to Sakura so she could file it over the years he worked here, etcetera. You know he was in charge of information on people before I came? He typed up the most complex profile on me..." He shook his head, glancing at Sasuke again as he looked at the word on the paper. "It's a little scrambled. He had certain letters bolded in each document, which I think he did to help you figure out the password." Sasuke nodded, looking at the letters again.

**N R T S R U V A I E S O V**

Biting his lip and grabbing a pencil, Sasuke started to scribble words onto the paper underneath the scrambled letters; Shikamaru leaning over to watch as he wrote the hidden message.

**NARUTO SURVIVES**

"What's the meaning about that?" Shikamaru mused. Sasuke narrowed his eyes, standing up and shoving his finished homework into his book bag, before glancing at Shikamaru. The Nara glanced at him, before nodding in silent understanding and grabbing his things, walking out without another word. Sasuke walked back into his Aniki's room, sitting down and looking at the password bubble in front of him, before typing up the message exactly how it was written into the bubble and pressing enter. There was the sound of something clicking, before the file opened in front of him, and his eyes widened at the title.

_**The Human Testing of ROOT**_

**Subtopics:**

_The Byakugen_

_The Sharingan_

_Shukaku_

_Kikai_

_Kagemane_

_Bijuu_

_Shikotsumyaku_

_Kyuubi_

His throat was suddenly dry as he stared at the subtopics, then at the title again, his breathing uneven and his hands shaking. He placed his hand on his mouse quietly, moving it to the first subtopic and highlighting it, before he took in a deep, steady breath, closing his eyes before he started to read.

_The PISO (Private Investigative Science Organization) called ROOT, under the direct control of Danzo Hitugaki, is a scientific group that focuses on the 'betterment of human society through science advances'. Think of the anime 'Gundam SEED', and the adjustments that are made to the coordinators at birth, and you have basically what ROOT was aiming for; the perfect civilization. _

_They tested on many 'special' civilians who had high tolerances for pain or high IQs. Each test depended on the person; some people had tests done to their eyes, while others had tests with their self control and others even had tests on their bones, body types, and manipulation by the mind. _

_These tests centered on Japanese legend and folklore, seeing as the majority of ROOT and their bodyguards from the OPG (Organized Protection Group) ANBU was half Japanese. The main scientists for ROOT were Japanese-Canadian Minato Namikaze, though he went under the alias 'Arashi Uzumaki', taking his wife's name. The other scientist was Masashi Sarutobi. Both these scientists have codenames like members of the organized gangs in the city have; Namikaze was called 'Yondaime', and Sarutobi was called 'The Professor'. Both were highly intelligent individuals who had the best of civilization in their minds._

_The first of these tests that were conducted was the eye test that was called 'Byakugen'. Twins Hiashi and Hizashi Hyuuga were the test subjects of this 'advance', where the eyes loose their pupils, turn a pale lavender/silver in colour and have the ability, when concentrating, to look through thin materials. It's said that if someone has the ability for long enough, they'll be able to look through mostly everything; walls, people, etc. During the testing, though, they found that a viral infection was connected to the microchip that was implanted into the twin's skulls, and this viral infection migrates to the lungs and attaches there, turning into a strange type of lung cancer. Sadly, after a year with the eyes, Hizashi succumbed to the cancerous cells, leaving his son—who had been implanted with the chip—alone with his uncle and cousins. _

Sasuke stopped reading, eyes wide as he stared at the paragraphs among paragraphs of information that were typed by Itachi's hand. He placed a hand by his eye, looking at the second subtopic with wide, almost frightened eyes. 'Human testing...By ROOT...' He thought quietly, eyes scanning the first part again. 'Byakugen...Sharingan...Shukaku...Kikai...Kagemane...Bijuu...Shikotsumyaku and Kyuubi...'

He bolted from his seat, running into the bathroom where he lost the contents of his lunch.

Tayuya was jerked awake by the sounds of his retching, rubbing her eye with the heel of her palm before looking at the bathroom door. She frowned a little, getting up silently and walking to the bathroom, pausing by Itachi's room and glancing in, seeing the computer opened. She then remembered the conditions Sasuke had laid for them to stay there, and turned away, walking into the bathroom as she stopped beside Sasuke. She kneeled beside him silently, rubbing his back soothingly and almost automatically.

Sasuke stiffened under her touch for a moment, before he turned his head a little to look at her in confusion. She looked back at him, before smirking a little. "Guess you wouldn't remember just yet...But we were pretty close in Oto." She said softly. "You were like my brother and whenever you would get sick or something, I'd be there." She laughed a little. "Guess it's just my nature now around you, eh..."

"Nn..." He murmured, closing his eyes before turning back to the toilet bowl beneath him. Tayuya sighed, closing her eyes as she continued to rub his back before he was finally finished, falling back to sit on the ground securely. She dropped her hand, flushing the toilet for him as he wiped the back of his mouth with the sleeve of his shirt. "I'm alright now..."

"What was with the barf-fest?" Tayuya asked bluntly, staring at him through the brown piece of hair in front of her face. Sasuke looked away from her, frowning a little as he shook his head a little. "Fine, don't tell me. Still as secretive as ever." She shoved his shoulder gently, standing up. She felt him grab her pant leg, though, and she looked down at him with a raised eyebrow. He was still staring at the tiled floor, but she knew he wanted to ask something; she could read him pretty easily like that.

"...Am I anything like I was...Before?" He asked softly. "Have I changed any?" He glanced at her then, and Tayuya knew he wanted a straight answer and not sugar-coated lies. She smiled a little bitterly, kneeling beside him and rubbing his head a little.

"You're the same. But you're gentler." She said quietly. "You're improving." She then grinned, kissing his forehead a little as she stood up again. "But you're just my little brother like that. I mean, it's in your nature to be more violent than the average Joe. You're not going to change that easily. You were manipulated. You can only change slowly. Patience, Uchiha." She then patted her stomach, yawning. "And now I want food. What'cha gonna feed me?"

Sasuke stared at her, surprised by her response before laughing a little. "What do you want?"

* * *

Naruto waved to Neji as he left, leaning against the door, watching as he disappeared before he sighed a little, stepping back and closing the door just at the phone started to ring. He blinked, glancing at the phone before he winced a little, placing a hand on his temple as he felt a strange shoot of pain down his head and spine. He shook his head a little, walking to the phone and picking it up, turning it on. "Hello?"

'Naruto, its Shino.'

"Wow, Shino, I didn't know you owned a phone of any sort. Isn't your family kind of silent?" He heard a soft breath of indignation and he smiled a little. "I'm joking. What's up?"

'...Has anything strange with Kyuubi happen lately?' He asked. Naruto paused, frowning a little as he narrowed his eyes, grip on the phone tightening as that strange pain returned as if called by the subject.

"No, not really." He lied lightly, placing a hand on his temple, pressing against it lightly. The pain slowly faded and he heard in the back of his mind Kyuubi growling profanities. "Why the question?"

'...Curious.' Shino murmured, and Naruto narrowed his eyes again before he heard the Aburame clear his throat. 'It's nothing, Naruto. I just saw something that was misinforming. I'll see you at school.' He then hung up and Naruto was left with the dial tone. He was still staring at the phone, face scrunched in pain when he heard the front door slam and Kakashi call out to him. He turned off the phone, placing it back in its cradle as he smoothed his face, before looking at the silver haired English teacher, smiling easily.

"Hey Kakashi," he greeted, walking over to him. "Why home so late?"

"Went to visit the old district." Kakashi muttered, shrugging out of his jacket and throwing it over the back of his chair. "You didn't even start dinner? Lazy ass."

"I had Neji over." Naruto defended himself, and Kakashi nodded, walking into the kitchen and pulling out some random ingredients for food. "Why'd you visit the abandoned part of the city?" Naruto asked then, using the term that most people used; only those who had been in the war ten years ago still called it the 'Old District', and seeing as Kakashi had been part of that war, he was entitled to calling it that.

Kakashi shrugged again, pulling off the bandage and pulling down the mask so he could breathe properly and talk without the hindrance of the mask. "I just thought I'd go visit. Is that illegal now or something?" He glanced at Naruto with his red eye, and Naruto felt a shiver run down his spine at the familiar eye; the Sharingan that he had for reasons that he never felt important to explain to him; Itachi had once commented on it, but he had never verified for Naruto when he had asked him about it. Just smiled a small, bitter smile he smiled a lot around Naruto whenever he looked at him. It always confused him to no end.

"It's not illegal...Just unusual." Naruto said, shrugging lightly. He winced a little at another shoot of pain, and Kakashi turned to look at him with narrowed eyes, lips pursing in a frown. "What?"

"...It's nothing." Kakashi mumbled, turning away from him as he continued to chop up onions quietly. 'His eyes are red...Sarutobi wasn't kidding...Dammit. At this rate...' He shook off the thoughts, growling under his breath and he felt the stare Naruto was giving him. "Go do your homework, Naruto. I'll call you down when dinner's ready."

"Someone's a grouch tonight..."

"Just do as I say, Naruto." Kakashi growled then, turning up and glaring at him. "I am in no mood for your jabs right now."

"...Sorry." Naruto whispered, looking away from him and feeling bad about poking at his anger. He quietly went to the stairs, walking up the stairs into his room, leaving Kakashi to his thoughts.

Kakashi was staring at him when he felt a sharp slap of pain, and hissed, looking down at his thumb to see it bleeding. "Dammit..." He swore quietly, putting his thumb into his mouth and sucking on it as he bled quietly. He looked towards the direction Naruto went in again, frowning a little. "...Final Stage, eh...? That's not...Good..."

* * *

Sasuke placed a plate of stew in front of Tayuya and she grinned, looking at him appraisingly. "You still remember my favourite dinner?" He looked at her, blinking, before she laughed. "Guess not. Nice guess, though. I love stew."

"...I had a feeling you did." Sasuke mumbled, looking over to the others as the twins Sakon and Ukon peeked their heads over the couch, looking at him sleepily. "Hungry?"

"Yes." They replied at once, walking over to him quietly and sitting at the table. Sasuke gave them some of the stew, placing it in front of them before he sat down with them with a glass of juice. "Now going to eat Sasuke?" Sakon asked, looking at him with a raised eyebrow; his hair fading from the light purple it had been died to its original soft blonde; Ukon's hair already pure blonde as it had been before.

"No...I don't think I'll be able to stomach it." He murmured a little, looking at the twins; oddly, even when their hair had been identical, he could tell the difference between them. It was something he had noticed when he had first seen them last year...After having separated from them years ago.

He fiddled with his glass as the three of them ate quietly to themselves, chewing and making comments once in a while; because of the general silence, Sasuke's mind was able to drift off on its own, and it found a memory of Oto that was actually, oddly pleasant...

_Sasuke sat on his designated seat, watching Orochimaru as he walked away from the meeting room, before he looked over to see Tayuya staring at him, arms crossed over her chest as she stared at him curiously; an eyebrow raised. "What?"_

"_Just trying to figure out what's so special about you." She said, before she grinned. "Come on a walk with me. You need to hang out with us sometimes; spending time with Kabuto and Orochimaru isn't healthy." Sasuke stared at her oddly, before he nodded and slipped off his seat, walking over to her. Like little children did when they went walking, Tayuya grabbed his hand and dragged him out of the recreational building into the nearby park, running with him to the swings. They both jumped on one and started to pump their small legs together, Tayuya laughing and Sasuke smiling a tiny bit. _

"_Why'd you join?" Tayuya asked suddenly. Sasuke blinked, looking at her oddly. She looked at him curiously, truly wanting to know. "What? I'm curious." _

"_...I joined because my family doesn't really notice me. They only notice Aniki..." He said softly. Tayuya nodded, looking forward again. _

"_My mom killed herself and Daddy centers his life around my big sister since she looks exactly like her. I'm neglected." She grinned, looking at him. "We're exactly alike that way, aren't we?" Sasuke looked at her, before nodding a little bit. She smiled, before she snapped, as if getting an idea. "Let's be siblings here! We'll stick around each other and make sure neither one of us gets hurt! Alright?" _

"_...I like that idea." _

"_And we'll never compete with who gets more attention from Orochimaru. Because even though he may favour one of us, we'll know he loves us all equally." Sasuke nodded again and Tayuya giggled, reaching over and taking his hand; the two swinging together with their hands linked in a promise._

Sasuke blinked, eyes widening a small bit before glancing at Tayuya quietly. She blinked, looking over at him and cocking her head to the side and he smiled a little bit, shaking his head. He heard her laugh then, and looked at her curiously.

"You haven't smiled like that in a long time..."

"...Is that right..."

* * *

Neji got home quietly, looking up to see Hanabi asleep by the front door. He smiled softly at the scene she made, slipping off his shoes and dropping his backpack by the door before bending down and picking her up, tucking her head under his chin as he walked her down the halls back to her room. After tucking her in quietly, he left her, stepping out of her room to see Hiashi standing in front of him with a quiet expression on his face. Neji looked at him, raising an eyebrow questioningly, before Hiashi held the phone out to him. The Hyuuga blinked, taking the phone silently with a nod, before walking down the hall, stepping into his room. He then closed his door, putting the phone at his ear. "Hello?"

'...Neji it's me.'

"Sasuke?" Neji blinked again, confused at the sound of his friend's voice. "What's up?"

'...I just wanted to know if you could hang out tomorrow. I need to get some air from this apartment, and Tayuya suggested we go to the park or something. I thought I'd invite someone from the gang I know as well, so that I'm not alone with these guys.' Neji heard in the background Tayuya yell in indignation, and the Hyuuga laughed a little, smiling a bit. It was something to get his mind off of.

"Yeah, sure. We'll go after school?"

'Mm. Don't tell Naruto.' Neji blinked at the second part, frowning a little. 'He'll want to know why he wasn't invited.'

"Why isn't he invited?"

'...I have things I need to talk to you about privately as well, Neji.' Sasuke mumbled, and Neji nodded a little. The Uchiha sighed on the other end. 'That's it. After school?'

"Yeah." Neji smiled again. "...Are you feeling alright?"

'...I've been better.' He heard him sigh again. 'Bye Neji.' He then hung up after Neji said a soft 'bye' in return, before the Hyuuga hung up as well, staring at the phone.

"Everything seems to be falling apart...At the seams..." He frowned, putting the phone down as he sat down on his futon, staring at the polished, hardwood floor beneath him. "Like everything that we had salvaged from last year's finally crumbling between our fingers as we grip to it..." He then sighed, falling back against the bed with his eyes closed; a bitter laugh escaping him.

"I sound just like Gaara..."

* * *

Outside of Hinata's room, the redhead stood in front of it, hand pressed against the glass as he stared at her prone figure with a frown on his face, his eyes strangely soft and worried. He felt a hand on his shoulder, and turned to see Temari staring at him, smiling a little. "Come on, Gaara. Visiting hours are closing and we have school tomorrow."

"Mm..." Gaara turned to look at Hinata once more, watching her sleeping quietly before he allowed his older sister to pull him away, talking about something or other. He scratched his neck a little, feeling a strange hotspot there as he frowned a little. '...Shukaku, what is that?'

_**That'd be me, brat. **_He heard the demon laugh in his mind crudely. _**I'm finally upgrading! Took me long enough...You'll be way more unstable now...Stick around Hyuuga as much as possible if you don't want to kill anyone. And pray she gets better, brat. Else you'll revert back into being a murderous monster.**_ He laughed again, cackling more, and Gaara cringed a little. Temari looked at him worriedly. "Are you alright?"

"...No."


	11. Broken, Beaten, Backstabber

A/N: So I'm off my little Hiatus now, alright? And I thought, since I haven't updated in a while, I'd give you this. I'll give you another maybe...Two this week before school starts for me again. Then I'll go to my schedule of every Sunday and Thursday. I just needed an overall break from fanfiction, and I've been working on a fiction story of mine called 'Carousel' for a while. I'm not very far, but I'm enjoying the writing process all the same. I'm getting out of my block as well, so that's good news. And I had a nice break. So you guys enjoy this update, alright? Sorry it's a little choppy in places; it's just supposed to be a chapter where a lot of things happen that are going to be explained more and more during the story. And this chapter was written at different times, so the writing quality might not be the same everywhere. I do apologize for that, and I will make up for that with my updates this week. Remember I really do appreciate you guys reading, and thank you all for being so patient! I will try my best to make you proud, but keep myself happy all the same.

Disclaimer: Naruto and Co. belong to Masashi Kishimoto.

* * *

"_We'll meet at the park at noon, by the swings, alright? Tayuya and the others will be in the other part of the park at this time. I can talk to you then." Neji listened to him on the phone that next day, before he nodded. _

"_Alright."_

Neji frowned as he recalled the memory from earlier that morning, before sighing a little to himself, walking through the arched gate that was the park. He had learned from Tayuya that this was where all the members of Oto had once been handpicked by Orochimaru; to think that they had all once played in lonely silence in this park; on the swings, the monkey bars, maybe even sitting on the bench. It didn't seem like it would be pleasant to be here, especially not for Sasuke who had unpleasant memories in the first place...But he had wanted to meet there, so he guessed it couldn't be that bad.

Neji walked towards the swings where Sasuke was pushing himself back and forth with legs that were much stronger than they had been when he was a child; he was staring out at nothing with a contemplating look on his face, grip on the chains slack, almost uncaring. The brunette stopped by one of the poles holding the swing set up, and Sasuke glanced down at him with dark eyes before he jumped off; flying through the air for a moment, almost suspended in time, before he landed, skidding a bit in the gravel as he bent to make sure he didn't fall on his face. He then stood, wiping off his pants as he turned back to the Hyuuga, walking over to him.

"Thanks for coming; I bet you're really confused now." Sasuke said, looking to the side; Neji nodded, and Sasuke nodded a fraction before sitting on the swing again, though not moving. Neji slid into the swing next to him, rocking back and forth a little as he stared at the ground, concentrating lightly; looking at the Uchiha from the corner of his pale eyes. "...Neji, how long have you had the Byakugen?"

Neji's eyes snapped over to the dark boy then, eyes widening a fraction at the question. His uncle had only briefly described to him how they obtained the Byakugen; he only knew the 'needed details' as Hiashi had stated it. But Sasuke...Asking that sort of question...Did he know about it?

"I've had it all my life, from what I remember." Neji said softly, looking at him suspiciously. "I mean, all the pictures I've seen of me laying around show me with them."

"What about baby pictures? Pictures when you were first born and stuff?" Sasuke asked then, looking at him quietly. Neji frowned, shaking his head a little and Sasuke frowned, nodding as he looked away. "I thought so..."

"Why?" Neji asked then, looking at him with confusion. "Why does that even matter? What did you want to tell me?"

"I know why your dad died, Neji." Sasuke spoke quietly. "And I know why Hinata's dying." He looked at the ground as he spoke, hands tightening around the chains. "I don't even want to know, but damn it I know."

"Why?" Neji asked then, his voice low as he thought he was finally going to get some answers. All he got was more confusion as Sasuke answered, though.

"The Byakugen."

* * *

Naruto fiddled with the strings of his sweatshirt for a moment, standing awkwardly outside of Kakashi's door before he sighed and opened the door, peeking in to see Kakashi running his fingers through his silver hair, a frown on his lips. "Kakashi...?" He called out quietly. The man looked over at him, his multicoloured eyes blinking slowly before he beckoned the teenager inside, pushing himself away from his mirror/desk set, and looked at Naruto with curiousity. Naruto walked in, pulling at his black jeans awkwardly before he tugged at his dark orange sweater again that had a red swirl pattern on the front. "What's up?" Kakashi asked then, leaning his head to the side and Naruto sighed, rubbing his head a little. Kakashi frowned at that, which caused confusion in the blonde's head, but he ignored it for now.

"I was wondering what pissed you off so badly last night when you came home." Naruto asked then, deciding to be blunt instead of tactful. Kakashi stared at him for a moment, before he sighed and shook his head, looking out his window. "Come on...You snapped at me for no real reason."

"Kyuubi's coming out more and trying to take over, right? That's why you're having headaches." Kakashi said then and Naruto's eyes widened, before they narrowed.

"What do you know about my headaches?"

"I heard you last night get up at least four times for Tylenol©." Kakashi stated simply, shrugging his shoulders as he got up to grab a sweater from his drawers, slipping it on over his head. He missed the scowl that Naruto shot at him, before his head popped through the hole and the blonde looked blank again. "So, is he?"

"...Yeah." Naruto muttered, shrugging his shoulders. "I don't know why. He said something about...'Final Stage'. Though I have no idea what he means by that." He sighed heavily, shoulders slumping and Kakashi looked at him pitifully, wishing he could tell him what it was all about but knowing that it would only make him worry more than he should. He had to concentrate on Akatsuki and Sasuke and Kabuto...He couldn't worry him about things from the past.

Naruto pondered about something for a moment, before looking up at Kakashi, cocking his head to the side. "Any news from Kisame lately?"

"He can't get out much right now...Though he did send me an e-mail the other day. He wants to meet up with the Special Ops and tell them some new updates in Akatsuki. They're moving more quickly now that Sasori is out of the picture...Sort of. He's been talking to Deidara lately, who's told him the names of the other members so that we know who to look for." He paused, frowning a little. "He couldn't tell me the names, but when you send Sasuke and them I'm sure we'll learn them then."

"Any set date?"

"September 15th; my birthday. That's in...A week." Kakashi nodded to himself, running his fingers through his hair before he smiled a little. "It's a Saturday, and he wants to meet them at dawn." He sighed a little. "You think Sasuke will mind getting up that early?"

"His sleeping patterns have been depleting lately. He's probably developing insomnia or something. I don't think he'll mind getting up to find out some stuff about Akatsuki...As long as it doesn't cut into the time he's dedicated to other matters at hand." The Uzumaki looked at the floor as he said this, stuffing his hands into his pockets as he shifted his feet around almost in discomfort. He looked up at Kakashi then, narrowing his eyes. "Why's he hacking? ...And what is he hacking?"

"I can't tell you that." Kakashi stated softly, looking at Naruto quietly. "That's something Sasuke will share with you when he feels the need to and he thinks the time is right." He sighed softly, running a hand down his neck before he suddenly grinned at Naruto. "Why don't you make some breakfast, eh? It's a day off from school..."

"Shouldn't you be at that school for the big ass meeting the teachers are holding?" Kakashi shrugged and Naruto sighed, smirking as he shook his head before he waved to him quietly, walking out of his room to go down the stairs. Kakashi watched after him for a moment, before turning to look at his reflection in the mirror with a frown.

"...Minato what have you done to your son...?"

* * *

Naruto walked into the kitchen, but stopped and gripped onto the wall as a sudden shock of pain hit him, causing him to fall to his knees as he hissed out loud. He clutched his head with his hands once he had fallen, curling up in a ball as he heard the shouting of Kyuubi as the fox tried to grasp things that were unwinding from the binds the fox had kept back in the recesses of his mind for a long time now.

His vision turned to black then, and he slumped on the ground after rolling his eyes to the back of his skull, making a choked noise in the back of his throat.

* * *

_He felt fingers run down his back and he shivered at the alien feeling, looking over at Hidan with a curious gaze as the silver-haired man smiled at him gently. "What are you doing, Hidan?" _

"_It's a form of affection, Naruto." Hidan explained softly to the young boy. "It shows that I care about you...Haven't you ever seen affection between two people?" _

"_...Well, I did see it between Rin and Obito. And they always do it privately. Not in the middle of a street." Naruto said, thinking back on his guardians before he smiled a little to the man in front of him. Hidan smiled at his innocence, brushing his bangs back for a moment before he nodded a little. _

"_Yes...Affection is more a private thing, isn't it?" He said softly in agreement, before he bent down to press a kiss to the top of the boy's head. "But that's only in America...Here, we show it a little more outwardly..." _

"_But our Japanese nature won't allow us to show affection in public; it's a shameful act of lust, apparently." Naruto stated as if reading from a textbook. He then paused, blinking a little slowly. "...Whatever 'lust' is." Hidan laughed then, ruffling up his hair teasingly before he placed a hand between his shoulder blades, leading him towards a gondola that was waiting for them, the one steering the slim boat waiting patiently with a smile towards the two of them. Hidan nodded to the man, helping Naruto into the gondola before sitting down himself. Naruto made himself comfortable, looking around with excited blue eyes and Hidan smiled at him softly; his brown eyes gentle._

"_Naruto...Do you love me...?" Hidan asked softly then and the blonde blinked, looking over at him with confused eyes. "Answer me...?" _

_The young boy thought for a moment, before he smiled and nodded quietly. "Yeah, I love you Hidan." He said innocently, and Hidan knew he hadn't meant it the way he wanted...But he would take it. _

"_I love you, too..." He whispered, wrapping an arm around the boy and burying his face into those blonde locks he loved to play with. "So much..."

* * *

_The next day was quiet and sombre, no one talking about anything as they made their way onto the roof. Ino was sitting beside Chouji, flipping through text messages on her phone as she idly waved her foot around a foot in the air since she had crossed her legs. The bigger boy beside her was holding a bag of chips, debating on whether to open them now or later, when he would be hungry for them even more than he was at the moment.

Sakura climbed onto the roof, looking at the sky above them with a frown, before she walked over to where Neji sat, looking at messages on his cell phone about important information for Bijuu. She read something over his shoulder, frowning worriedly as he looked up at her, taking her hand wordlessly and squeezing it; in need of some comfort. The pinkette looked over at Shikamaru who sat next to Sasuke where Shikamaru and Chouji usually sat. Sasuke's normal spot was taken up by Temari, who looked extremely pissed off, but worried at the same time. Gaara sat in his usual spot, looking at the floor as he muttered to himself softly, though in reality he was talking to Shukaku out loud.

Everyone seemed stiff almost, as Kakashi sat in the spot where Naruto usually sat, hands clasped together as he stared at the ground of the roof. "Naruto's been unconscious since yesterday. He'll wake up soon...But I thought I should tell you that." He said, looking up at Sasuke though he was talking to everyone. Sasuke stared at him for a moment, before looking away. Kakashi sighed, turning to look at Sasori and Jiraiya, who both sat on the roof with the students, looking almost uncomfortable. "Sasori...What's Deidara told you lately?"

"Nothing much." Sasori spoke softly, looking at the others as he saw their worry for their ill leader. "He speaks of his new partner as if he's mentally challenged. He calls the young man 'Tobi'..." Sasori sighed, shaking his head. "He handles fire. An upbeat young man." Kakashi nodded, looking over at Jiraiya who shrugged a shoulder.

"I'm learning about the leader. He goes by an alias called 'Pein'. He changes appearance a lot, and doesn't like people to see what he actually looks like. He's rather fond of hair dye and wigs, it seems..." He frowned a little. "Master of disguise, I guess you could say." He shrugged a shoulder, looking at Kakashi quietly. "I got nothing else, though I'm digging. I'm following a woman that travels with him a lot...Konan." He frowned a little. "She's a slight bit strange...But also familiar to me somehow." He shrugged, and Kakashi narrowed his only visible eye, sighing quietly.

"...Sasuke, how are you doing with your side project?"

"I've found vital information. I'm taking it in as we speak." Sasuke said softly, looking at Kakashi quietly. He frowned a little, and Kakashi looked away from him, not wanting to be under that scrutiny first thing in the morning. "Other than that...Nothing really." He then paused, and Kakashi glanced at him again. "...Is there anything to do with Kisame?"

"You're quick," Kakashi commented, before looking at the members of the Special Ops team only then; everyone else listened on the sidelines. "He wants to meet up with the Special Ops on the 15th of September at dawn. He has some information about what's going on inside Akatsuki that Sasori can't find out." Sasuke nodded, shifting a little as he glanced over at Shino who seemed to be quieter than usual...Which was a feat in itself since the young man didn't talk too much in the first place. Kakashi glanced over at the Aburame at the same time; eyes narrowed a little as he watched him bury his face into his high-collared jacket, before looking at the others. "Get ready for classes..."

"We shouldn't," Neji spoke up then, glancing at Kakashi as he held up his cell phone to show a text message written formally. "We've been 'cordially invited' to a brawl with Akatsuki. Only their special members; Floral, Shark, Bomber and Anonymous. The others stay behind." Kakashi's eyes narrowed. "We'll need to take Chidori in place of Kyuubi, since he's currently out of commission. He and Shukaku can plan." The Hyuuga sighed tiredly, glancing at Sasuke who seemed uncomfortable at that moment. "I know Chidori dislikes fighting because of...Personal issues, but he's a Special Member; they're above Second in Command in overall rank."

"...We'll send Shukaku, Chidori, Byakugen and Melee. The rest of us can stay behind." Sakura spoke up then, looking at them all to see if they would disagree with her. None seemed to. She nodded, looking over at Kakashi to see he was looking at the entire situation with disapproval. "I'm sorry, Kakashi...But they need to accept it. We have to seem like we're not trying to find out everything about them. But we can't send too many people, either. We're sending out best fighters; what do you want us to do?"

"Ignore it completely; lie and say Neji deleted the message."

"Then I would be announced as incompetent as a contactor and would have to be replaced." Neji spoke matter-of-factly; his face deadpanned as he stared at Kakashi. The English teacher glared at him with his one eye, before nodding quietly to the situation. He watched as Tenten, Sasuke, Gaara and Neji all stood, leaving the roof by the ladder, before the silver haired man looked at the other members.

"...Continue as if you don't know where they are. They're sick alright?" He said softly, and they all nodded, shifting uncomfortably. Kakashi then sighed, closing his eyes. "...I'm going to call up Kurenai. She's overlooking Naruto for me."

* * *

Kurenai sat at Kakashi's kitchen table, reading a book on mothering quietly when suddenly the phone rang, and she looked over at it, grabbing it and turning it on. "He hasn't woken up Kakashi," she said softly, closing her book and getting up, walking to the couch where Kakashi had rested Naruto when he had found him unconscious. "He's moved around and muttered in his sleep...But he hasn't woken up."

She heard a sigh on the other end, and a soft 'thanks' before Kakashi hung up, and Kurenai sighed a little, hanging up herself as she placed the phone down, walking over to the blonde and kneeling next to him. She smoothed his forehead quietly, looking at him worriedly before she frowned. "You're stronger than this, Naruto Uzumaki. Get up already..."

He didn't react and she sighed heavily, eyes closed quietly. "Why is this happening...?"

* * *

Sasuke glanced over at Neji as he looked at the ground, frowning as he thought. The Uchiha knew why he was upset but he wasn't going to do anything about it, seeing as he had wanted to tell Neji what he had told him. He didn't tell him too much, since it's was private information. He had simply explained that there was something within the Byakugen that caused the lung disease. He couldn't get into deeper detail, though. He didn't know who was listening in at the park; he had felt eyes on his back the entire time, and he knew it wasn't Tayuya, Sakon or Ukon; it hadn't even been Neji. It was someone else entirely, someone he didn't know. It worried him.

Finally, he glanced back at Gaara as he muttered quietly, before looking at Sasuke quietly with his dead green eyes. "Do you have a plan?"

"We're going to be careful during this fight. These are full grown adults, and they aren't fooling around." Sasuke shifted uncomfortably, touching the hilt of a sword that had once belonged to his Aniki. His fingers wrapped around it tightly, and his teeth clenched, before he sighed slowly. "We have to watch out for each other...And if possible we'll have to keep a far distance from them. I haven't seen Floral in action before, nor have I seen Anonymous. Only Shark and Bomber, and that was because they had been neutral our last battle." He frowned. "The war that Orochimaru called."

Gaara nodded, looking to the side as he fisted his hands under his arms, crushing them against his stomach to keep his tense posture hidden. He looked over at Tenten and Neji, both of whom were listening, before he glanced up over at the other side of the abandoned city.

A woman with soft blue hair walked in the front, looking almost bored as she wore a paper flower in his hair, walking regally in her robes. Shark was behind her, smirking as he spun around his knives in his hands, glancing at the small amount of members, eyes landing on Gaara and Sasuke. His hazel eyes narrowed a little, and he bit the inside of his cheek. They were going to have to fight the leopards then, was he? He frowned a little as he saw Sasuke gripping onto a sword, licking his lips. 'Give the kid a weapon, a purpose, and a target...And he could easily kill someone.' He thought darkly the same things he had said to Kakashi the other day, before he glanced at Deidara and Tobi, smirking a little.

"We've got ourselves a bunch of babies. I thought we came for a fight, not babysitting." He started with the badmouthing early, watching as Sasuke narrowed his eyes only slightly. He grinned at the brat, looking at him challengingly. "Can I call Chidori?"

"Of course," Konan's voice was soft as she spoke, stopping in front of them and nodding to Sasuke and the others respectfully. "We thank you for accepting." She said gently, her dark eyes mesmerizing but deadly and dead at the same time. Sasuke nodded, looking at her carefully as his eyes shifted into Sharingan, narrowed slightly. "…An Uchiha." She whispered quietly, pursing her lips before glancing at the other three behind her. "We've agreed to not fight to the death." She spoke then, looking back at Sasuke. "We will only do this if you swear not to fight to the death."

"We don't kill," Tenten said softly, looking at her quietly. Konan looked at Tenten, staring at her for a moment. The brown haired girl felt like she had met her partner for the fight. Kisame then stepped up, grinning as he shifted his shoulders.

"Enough talk, let's fight!" The others nodded, before Sasuke pulled the sword from his side, and jumped at Kisame, eyes narrowed as he lunged, ducking and wrapping his arm around the larger male, pulling him surprisingly easily backwards.

Kisame gasped, before skidding his feet against the ground, grabbing the paler boy's arm and flinging him off, watching as he spun in the air and landed on the top of a broken, bent light post, staring at him with lethal eyes. Kisame's grin disappeared, and he shifted carefully; he knew those eyes well. He had been Itachi's partner before, and they used to have practice fights…When Itachi got serious, he always got that look in his eyes.

"You fight just like him." Kisame mumbled as the sounds of fighting went on behind them; Neji had grabbed Deidara and Tobi had gone for Gaara, which was probably a foolish thing for the fire-user to have done. Sasuke's frown deepened and his eyes narrowed as he crouched further into his position, his sword held out to his side carefully, his grip on it tightening.

"Do not talk about him, you don't _**deserve too**_!" Sasuke hissed, though his voice rose at the last two words as he jumped, landing and swiping a kick at Kisame's midsection, narrowly avoiding one of his hands that held a weapon. He pressed down against the ground, rolling over and pushing himself up by his shoulders, jumping onto his feet and lurching forward, bringing his sword to his front and crashing it against Kisame's knives, metal sparking as it met harshly. Kisame looked at him with wide eyes as Sasuke suddenly grabbed his wrist, grip tightening on it as a slow smile appeared on his face.

"A leopard doesn't change its spots…" Kisame muttered, feeling something bad coming if he didn't rip himself away from him soon. "You said we wouldn't fight to the death."

"And we won't." Sasuke whisper as he pressed closer to him; Kisame lifted his arms a little at the surprising strength behind it all. Sasuke was so small…How did he hold this strength? "But no one said anything about broken limbs."

And then Sasuke twisted his grip on Kisame's wrist, making Kisame let go of one of his knives as he hissed in pain before he heard a soft snapping sound. It took him a moment, but after that moment he yelled out and jumped back, holding his loose hand to his chest; his arm flopped oddly in awkward positions, and he knew without getting the doctor to look at it that it was broken. He watched as Sasuke stood up straight slowly, looking at him contemplating as he kicked his knife to the side, not even bothering to see where it went. "You were his best friend." Sasuke whispered softly, eyes narrowed. "And you let him die…Even though you knew I still needed him." He took a few steps towards Kisame, and the taller man was instantly on the defensive. He had hit a very painful nerve. "Why didn't you stop him?"

"How was I supposed to know what he was planning on doing?" Kisame spat back, flinching as he saw pain go through those red eyes before they hardened again. He knew then he had said something wrong.

Sasuke lifted his sword slowly, holding it in front of him as he stopped a few feet from Kisame, staring at him quietly. "…Wrong answer."

* * *

Tenten blocked a hit from Konan, watching as the harsh, but papery weapon fell to the ground. She pulled out a pocket knife from her back pocket, flicking it open and holding it in front of her defensively. She glanced over to Sasuke's fight, seeing the two of them talking, and frowned. Something was going on over there, and it wasn't good…

"Always pay attention to your own battle," a soft voice whispered by her ear, and Tenten only had enough time to jump out of the way; she hissed as something sharp slid across the skin of her side, one eye closed as she landed, holding one hand to her side, the other holding the knife in front of her. "Your leader's fight is his own…This is your fight. You worry about yourself, not him." She chastised quietly, and Tenten gritted her teeth, narrowing her brown eyes. "What is a delicate girl like you doing in a gang of this degree, anyhow?"

"Why is a woman like you in a gang of this degree?" Tenten shot back, and Konan looked at her curiously, before she inclined her head a little.

"Touché." She murmured, before she threw three things at her. Tenten caught them, looking at the paper weapons before looking at Konan strangely. The woman was staring at her with curiousity, and Tenten pushed her thoughts to the side, jumping backwards and landing on an old abandoned car, half blown up, crouched low on it as she rifled through what else she had on her. She had luckily packed her weapon's pack with her that day, getting a funny feeling in her bones. She grabbed three needles, looking at them with contempt before she threw them as a distraction, quickly jumping off the car and running around Konan, running at her crouched low so that she wouldn't be in her peripheral vision. She got close enough to her waist before a hand snapped out and grabbed her by the neck, lifting her up and throwing her to the side. Tenten gasped as her back hit the brick wall and she winced, glaring at Konan as she looked at her, plucking the three needles out of her shoulder quietly. "Clever girl."

Meanwhile Tobi was running away from Gaara, who wasn't even chasing him. The redhead was staring at the man with the orange mask oddly, blinking a little stupidly. Why had they let such a fool into the Akatsuki? He stopped though, when he was a good distance from Gaara, and turned towards him, pulling something out of his back pocket. Gaara watched as he pulled out a lighter then, too, and light the something, eyes widening as he saw a torch of fire. The mask was shifted slightly, and the redhead could see a pale chin and mouth, before the man blew the fire and it flew towards Gaara. He jumped backwards, getting out of the line of fire and narrowed his eyes. This one used fire tricks like Sasori had said he did. He was clever…Using a stupid act to get him at the right distance. Shukaku growled something sweetly into his ear, and Gaara smiled a little, before shaking his head, hands fisting tightly. 'No,' he thought harshly, glaring at Tobi again as he seemed to mutter curses. 'I'm not doing that.' He shifted his position shoulders tense as he stared at Tobi who grinned at him briefly before the mask fell over his face again, keeping him completely hidden. "Anonymous fits him." He mumbled quietly to himself, before glancing around him quickly, finding no nearby weapon. "Think we can take him hand-to-hand?"

_**Think that you can get close enough?**_

"Foolish question…" He mumbled, black rimmed eyes narrowed before he crouched, shifting a foot before running towards him, watching as he jumped a little in surprise at the speed the small boy held within him.

* * *

Neji blocked a hit from Deidara with his arm, dropping and rolling out of the way around him as he threw a small explosive, running up to him and hitting him at the back of the head, watching as his eyes widened before he collapsed to his knees. He stared at his opponent, knowing that had been too easier before he backed away a few paces wincing as an explosive went were he had once been. So that was his last minute defense? Deidara really was a fool if he had believed that would've worked against Neji when Byakugen was activated. He paused, placing a hand at the corner of his eye before he scowled, turning to look at the other fights. His eyes widened as he saw Sasuke pulling his sword from Kisame's shoulder; the older man didn't have weapons, and looked to have a broken arm. His face twisted oddly before he ran towards Sasuke, ignoring the unconscious blonde that he left behind him. He was down for the count, he knew that well.

Once he was close enough to the Uchiha, he saw that he looked manic and didn't even care that blood was dripping down his face, nor did he seem to listen to Kisame as he tried to tell him to stop; he was loosing blood fast. Without thinking twice Neji hit the sword from Sasuke's hand, grabbing his wrist and twisting his arm behind him, wrapping his other arm around his waist and pulling him towards him, hissing in his ear. "Stop this now, Sasuke, you're loosing yourself." Sasuke stiffened once he had been captured, before he fell loose in the Hyuuga's grasp, and Neji let go of him slowly, watching as he deactivated Sharingan, looking away from Kisame. Neji looked at Kisame who nodded to him thankfully, and the Hyuuga nodded back quietly, before looking at the brooding dark boy beside him.

"What the hell did you think you were doing, Chidori?" The pale boy hissed then, and Sasuke winced, looking to the side. "Are you fucking _insane_?"

"He was my brother's best friend…And I trusted him." He whispered quietly. "I trusted him to make sure my brother was always safe…Since Aniki never, ever trusted me with his secrets. Only _him_. And he betrayed that trust. He's a traitor. A goddamn traitor to my trust…" He looked at Neji. "He doesn't deserve to live this easily."

"Because a gang life is easy to live in." Neji said gently, looking at him. "You should know better than that, Sasuke. Gang life is not easy to live in…You should know this best. It's changed you so…Violently. You can barely control yourself."

"…He doesn't deserve any trust given to him…" Sasuke whispered then, looking away. "He doesn't…" There was a sudden yelp then, and all three looked over to see Gaara drop Tobi's body from where he stood, looking at the unconscious man as Tenten jumped away from Konan who coughed up blood before falling to her knee, holding up her hand in a sign of surrender.

"Bijuu wins this fight." She said softly then, though everyone could hear her; it had gotten so quiet. "We shall return to our leader and tell him this news. We wish you the best." She stood up slowly, looking at Sasuke who stared at her emotionlessly. "Best wishes to Kyuubi." She said gently then, her dead eyes almost gaining life as she said this before she turned and walked away, the other members that could follow following; those who couldn't were picked up by those who could lift things heavier than three pounds and dragged away.

The other members of Bijuu walked over to Sasuke, looking at him with wide eyes as he wiped blood from his cheek; Gaara stared at him with what almost seemed to be disappointment but awe at the same time; disappointment for loosing control, awe for gaining it back before anything bad happened. He turned to look at them all, looking at their injuries and their beaten up states before he sighed. "…We go home." He said gently, closing his eyes. "And we rest."

* * *

School was out and Kakashi was home faster than you could probably blink. Kurenai looked at him, shaking her head as he stared at her hopefully and he sighed, pulling down his mask and walking into his house to the couch where Naruto still rested, still as stone. He kneeled beside his blonde charge, staring at him for a moment before poking his stomach quietly. "Come on, Naru…Get up or you'll never beat me at a spare." He said gently, smiling weakly. "You've always wanted to do that, right? I mean…I've always beaten you. It's why you asked me to leave the gang…The leader can't look weak." He laughed weakly. "Come on, Naruto…Don't do this to me. We're all worried about you…Wake up for me…"

He sighed, closing his eyes, resting his forehead on the couch my Naruto's arm. "Wake up for Sasuke…"

* * *

"_Hidan…?" The silver/blonde haired male looked over at the blonde, smiling at him curiously. "Umm…This'll be the last time we meet up like this." _

_Hidan's eyes widened and he stared at Naruto curiously, blinking a few times. "Why's that, Naruto?" He asked then, and Naruto shifted uncomfortably in his spot, looking at the ground. _

"_We're…Moving back home. To the States." He said, looking at him. "…We're done what we needed to do here." _

_Hidan had learned from Naruto that his guardians and him had come up here, looking for some stuff on Naruto's past and a man named Jiraiya, seeing as he was somehow connected to his blonde, and Naruto had Italian in his blood on his mother's side, though not a lot. _

"_That's understandable." Hidan said weakly, smiling a little. "I knew you wouldn't stay here forever…But could you do something for me?" Naruto looked at him curiously and Hidan stood, walking over to him before he bent down, looking at him eye-to-eye. "Give me a gift." _

"_What kind of gift?" _

"_A very precious gift…"

* * *

_Naruto moaned quietly face scrunching up before his eyes snapped open, blood red and terrified. He looked around, looking at Kakashi who slept on the floor beside the couch, then at Kurenai who slept on the other couch, curled up under a blanket. He panted for a few minutes, his eyes fading back to blue before he sat up slowly looking outside to see it was dark out. He glanced at the phone for the time, seeing it was two in the morning before he reached over and grabbed the phone, dialing a familiar number. It rang three times before a voice answered, and he could breathe easy. "Sasuke…"

'What are you doing up?' He heard the other's voice, worried and relieved at once. 'Did you just wake up or something?'

"Yeah…Thank God…Why are you up?" He asked then, blinking. "I thought for sure you'd be asleep."

'I've been thinking a lot.' Sasuke mumbled, before he sighed. "I'm glad you're awake…Are you alright?'

"…I think so."

* * *

Standing on the roof, looking at the stars, Neji sighed quietly to himself as he thought of the discussion he and Sasuke had had earlier. The Byakugen caused the strange lung disease…But how? And why? Why did it affect his father? Why did it affect Hinata? Was there some sort of…characteristic that you needed to be affected? Hanabi wasn't affected…Neither was Hiashi-san or himself. But Hinata…Hinata and his father…

Why were they affected?


	12. Antisocial Behaviour

A/N: Wanna know what rights you guys have to do to me right now?  
You can glare at me angrily and silently.  
If you rant and rave about my disappearance, though, I'll put the story on hiatus out of spite and major writer's block. Meaning you have no right to throw tomatos at me, I've been suffering enough. _(sigh)_  
Anyhow! On a lighter note!  
I have finally updated. It's not the usual length and I will try to get the next chapter up for you guys, since I ended at a 'WHA?' place here. Not really 'OMG WHAT DUD YOU DOO' place but a '...There's gonna be some type of explanation, RIGHT?' place. Because I do that.  
Enjoy!

Disclaimer: Naruto and Co. belong to Masashi Kishimoto. 

* * *

Naruto held onto his head as he stared at the phone in his lap, having hung up with Sasuke over an hour ago. He looked down at the floor where Kakashi slept peacefully, his mask loose around his neck. He rolled onto his side, leaning down and poking his guardian's cheek quietly, staring at him with tired eyes. Kakashi stirred, multi-coloured eyes opening before they flicked up to the blonde, widening marginally as he sat up, Naruto rolling away from him as he did so; he laid on his back now, phone on his stomach. "You're awake..." He mumbled, sitting at the couch by his feet, picking up the phone and holding it. "...And energetic enough to make a phone call."

"I had to hear him." Naruto mumbled, looking at the roof. "I had to hear him first after I woke up...I didn't care if I should've told you I was up or Kurenai or whatever...I had to hear _him_." He then paused, and looked at Kakashi. "How long have I been out?" 

"Only a day." Kakashi said, putting the phone back on its cradle before looking at his ward quietly. "...Naruto, what happened while you were out?" 

"I dreamt of him." The blonde mumbled softly, looking to the side. "I also spoke to Kyuubi during breaks. He told me some of the things that are happening to me...My strength's gonna double, as is my speed and my sight and hearing...All of my senses, basically. It's going to override my normal system, and it's going to affect me really badly. He doesn't know how badly though." He closed his eyes. "...Kakashi I have the feeling I'm not going to last very long...Like I'm going to die or something." 

"That's crazy," Kakashi said, shaking his head. "You're too stubborn to die." A smile stretched across the tanned boy's face, before Kakashi reached forward with a hand and ruffled up his hair softly. "...Go back to sleep." 

"I've been sleeping for so long, though..." 

"Three more hours won't hurt you." Kakashi insisted and Naruto sighed, nodding before he curled up to his side, hugging a cushion to his chest. He fell asleep quickly, Kakashi watching him for a moment before he looked over to see Kurenai's eyes open, staring at him quietly. "...He knows something's wrong." 

"Will he actually die?" She asked softly then, her voice groggy from lack of use. Kakashi shrugged, looking at the roof. 

"I don't know." 

* * *

The days passed by in almost a blur, everyone doing their own thing. Sasuke was becoming more and more introverted, barely keeping contact with anyone except for Naruto, and sometimes Sakura or Neji. He didn't talk to people about what was going on his head, and he was found with his nose stuffed into a book or into his sketchpad more often than not, leaving him to become antisocial. Naruto was quiet as well, and didn't talk that much; everyone worried over Naruto because he was usually loud and exuberant, or at least just loud. Sasuke they were used to; he had bouts of antisocialism. Naruto never did.

The fifteenth came on them quickly and the Special Ops group gathered around an hour before dawn, talking quietly amongst themselves as they set up their radios and mikes, clipping them onto the collars of their shirts and sweaters. Sasuke finished clipping his onto a high collared dark blue long sleeved shirt he wore, his black jeans snug on his waist and hanging loosely, pooled on the ground swallowing black sneakers. He shoved his hands into his pockets then, looking at the others; Neji straightening an ivory coloured V-neck sweater and blue jeans, Chouji munching on a bag of Lays© plain chips, looking at him quietly, Kiba zipping up a grey hoodie over a black tank top, Shikamaru shoving his hands into dark blue jeans, a green long sleeved covering his arms and Shino burying his mouth into the high collar of his black turtleneck. 

The Uchiha glanced around for a moment before he nodded quietly and waved his hand, indicating them to follow as they left the meeting spot, which was under a willow tree and Sasuke slipped open a manhole and jumped into the underground, crouched as he landed. He watched as Neji, Kiba, Shikamaru and Shino jump down one after another, Chouji sliding down the ladder so he didn't hurt himself or others by jumping down. They all lined up behind Sasuke who started down the familiar lanes of the underground, looking up at the vents and occasional manhole to learn their bearings by light, sound and scent. 

Finally, Sasuke held up a hand to stop them and went to a ladder that was bolted to the wall, climbing up to a vent that peeked through bright, yellow light. He looked through it, glancing around before he saw a large figure sitting on a log in the rocky beach, watching the chilly waters tide over. He looked down at the others, waving them up as he climbed through the vent to the parking lot, looking around as he took in the fresh, salty air. He stepped away from the vent as the others climbed through, Shikamaru pulling Chouji in last before they all walked carefully over to the waiting figure. They turned, and hazel/yellow eyes looked at them, before a grin stretched across Kisame's face; his arm was in a sling and he had a few bandages on him, but overall he was looking better than before. 

"Before you speak," Sasuke said softly, holding up a hand and stepping forward. "You're required to give us your name, your leader's name, and your association to gangs." Kisame rolled his eyes before nodding. "Whenever you're ready to." 

"The name's Kisame Hoshigaki, AKA Shark, I am a member of the uniformed gang-for-hire called Akatsuki, and our leader's name is unknown. Only a few of us have seen his true face." He raised an eyebrow and Sasuke nodded, sitting on the ground near him as the others sat themselves around the two, watching him quietly. "I've got some information for you about Akatsuki and their plans. Also some names you might be interested in." 

"We know Reaper's, Gamblers, Shark's, Bombers, and Red Desert's." Sasuke said softly. "You'll tell us the others?" 

"Yeah." Kisame nodded before he sighed. "Floral goes by the name of Konan. I don't know if it's her real name, but she goes by that name all the same." He closed his eyes, thinking them over. "Cannibal is a man named Zetsu...And he actually is a recovering cannibal. And Anonymous goes by an alias since he forgets his real name...He calls himself 'Tobi'." He looked at Sasuke, and Sasuke nodded for him to continue. "They're strong members, stronger than a lot of us...You met Konan at the battle." 

"Yes; she fought Tenten." Neji mumbled, before looking back at Kisame as he waited to continue. 

"They have plans on planning a revolution, as you already know. The first one in 10 years. The last one left the city in ruins; it's now a gang battlefield. Common ground, a place where no one can call territory." He sighed. "The revolution is for territory over the city. Once they take over, they plan to pull something to hold total domination. Then they'll have complete control and they'll get money, power...Everything they ever dreamed of. And if they have that, they have the right to raid through anything. They can find out things about hospitals and science departments...They can find the past documents on ROOT and ANBU, something they've been searching for years for." He sighed, looking to the side. "It's what the leader's been dreaming of since he joined years ago...Almost 17 years ago now." Sasuke nodded, frowning a little before he looked at the rocks he sat on, fiddling with a grey one. "Things aren't looking too great." Kisame mumbled, before looking at Sasuke. "How are things in Bijuu going?" 

"Kyuubi woke up after the battle. He's been recovering since." Sasuke mumbled, looking at nothing but the rock in his hands. "We've been gathering as much information as possible..." He sighed a little, shaking his head. "Things are just confusing right now." 

"You're telling me..." 

* * *

Another few weeks passed, birthdays going by without celebration. It was December by the time things settled, and Sasuke locked himself into his apartment, refusing to leave for anything; grocery shopping, schooling, even company. He didn't want to see anyone in this month. He didn't think he'd be able to handle socialization of any degree during this month.

He sat in Itachi's room, reading through files that weren't important but were valid to him all the same before he breathed in deeply through his nose, clicking onto the file he had unlocked months ago with the help of Shikamaru and Sakura. He was still thankful to them. 

_After some heavy studying of the Byakugen, it was learned that only certain people could obtain the viral infection of the lungs. The thing that made Hizashi susceptible to the infection was the fact that his physical strength was weaker than his elder twin's. Weakness in body types makes all the difference it seems, and there is no found cure as of yet, though they are still testing. _

Sasuke bit his bottom lip, narrowing his eyes before he let out a shaky breath and read the next subtopic, frowning as he read it. _'The Sharingan'_. He inhaled slowly, before he started to read. 

_The next of these tests that ROOT conducted was another test on the eyes, a branch from the Byakugen. These eyes are called the Sharingan eyes, and there are three stages to these eyes. There is the Normal Stage, the Completed Stage, and the Mangekyou Stage. These eyes turn red with three commas connected by a ring around a pupil. The Normal Stage has the three commas with no ring, the Completed Stage acquires the ring, and the Mangekyou Stage connects these commas so that it makes a pinwheel in the eye. _

_There were three test subjects for this test, all varying in different ages. They all came from the Uchiha Clan, and came willingly. The eldest of the subjects was a man named Obito Uchiha, who brought his younger cousins Itachi Uchiha and Sasuke Uchiha, who was just a baby then. Babies were the prime subject to experiment on, because they were young and their immune systems were not powerful enough to reject anything the chip brought. Itachi, 6-years-old, was also a prime example of a perfect subject because he was young enough to not be affected, but old enough to understand to some capability and train his eyes to their best capability. Obito was the worst possible candidate, though. _

_After he had the eyes he disappeared off the face of the earth, only to reappear years later with ex-ANBU Kakashi Hatake and a woman named Rin Itsumi who had no general background on her. This was after the disappearance and then sudden death of Minato Namikaze and the fall of ROOT, ANBU and other such powerful gangs after a revolution. They were taking care of Minato's young son Naruto, who also had tests done on him just a year before Sasuke had had tests on him, before the revolution occurred. _

_It is stated in Masashi's report on his subject that Obito just stopped walking one day before he collapsed in the park with Kakashi beside him. He brought him to The Professor and Masashi, following the last wishes of Obito, removed his eye and gave it to Kakashi, who had lost the use of his left eye during the revolution explosion. _

_The reason for Obito's collapse was a sudden energy drainage which the Sharingan caused to happen. It's a virus that connects to energy reserves in the body and drains them faster than they usually do, causing the person to be constantly tired and unable to keep awake for long periods of time. This condition grows worse the higher level of Sharingan you manage to maintain. Obito was trained to an advanced level of Mangekyou, which would manifest later on onto the fourth, nameless stage. Because of this he was drained quickly and fell dead. After the operation, though, his body went missing from the laboratory. _

_Meanwhile, Itachi was trained in the Sharingan until he mastered it, and seemed to be unaffected by the virus. He had little signs that he was tired, though he would sleep for long periods of time and developed heavy shadows and sags under his eyes to show how much he was hiding. Sasuke was not trained in the Sharingan at all, and never learned he had it under Itachi's influence. _

Sasuke looked away from the file, closing it before he rubbed his eyes, frowning. There seemed to be a reoccurring problem with the advances; each one so far had some sort of backfire on them that could weaken and/or kill the subject. The Uchiha's eyes opened, revealing red Sharingan before they faded back to black and he shook his head, blinking a few times. 

Things...Were getting complicated again. 

* * *

In a suburban home on the outskirts of the city, Shino Aburame looked out the window of his bedroom before turning back to his computer, sitting down behind it and opening a file. He sighed softly under his breath as he looked at a picture of Sasuke; a picture of the male when he was younger, and looking more sullen than he did now, and angrier than now as well.

He then scrolled down to the bottom of the document, skipping a few places before he started to type again, green eyes looking at the screen reflecting the shining screen brightly in his dark room. 

_Attitude, personality and control on his person have been depleting lately caused by lack of healthy eating, sleeping and socializing habits. He has locked himself in his apartment, refusing human contact for the entire month of December. Neighbours note that he rarely eats now, and they only see him out of the apartment when he needs to get mail. _

He paused in his typing, looking at his door as his father opened it, flicking on the light. Shino winced and Shibi nodded in understand, flicking off the lights again before he closed the door, walking to his son's bed. He sat down and Shino turned to look at his father; looking into identical, shining green eyes. His father stared at him for a moment, before looking at his screen. "How's your study going?" 

"Not well. I can't see my subject for long periods of time because he's locked himself into his apartment. The month of December will be very monochrome dull." He noted and Shibi nodded, looking at the floor in contemplation. "Father how much longer will I have to go on with this charade before we obliterate gang activity?" 

"We can't obliterate it because it's what runs the city. The government does nothing useful, so the gangs do it for us. They're actually helpful...We're trying to tone down the violence, though. We need to obliterate those who have taken life. You'll need to stay there for a little while longer while you watch Sasuke." 

"This is tiring, Father. I've been watching him since he left the city years ago. And it was hard watching him from a safe distance in a barren land like the country." He frowned, looking over to his window again. "I feel as if I'm betraying his trust now that I've gotten to know him...Father he is not a bad person. Just a lost child." 

"He still has killed, even if he is a lost child. He still is evil." His father frowned. "Why have your mind sets changed over the year and a half you've been watching this boy? You hated him before...Why do you now sympathize?" 

"...I didn't know him before." 

* * *

Naruto rubbed his head, glaring at his reflection as red eyes glared back, looking menacing and annoyed at the same time. Finally, after a long period of time, they faded to blue, and the migraine that always followed this hit him harder than usual. He winced, gripping his head before he walked out of the bathroom, going into his room and pulling off his shirt, grabbing the bandages from his bedside. He wrapped them around his knuckles and hands, before he positioned himself into a boxer's stance in front of his punching bag, properly fisting his hands before he started to beat on the punching bag, hoping lightly from foot-to-foot as he did so. He heard his door open a moment into his practicing and glanced up to see Kakashi watching him from his doorway, holding a glass of water and some pills.

"Put them on my dresser." He muttered and the English teacher nodded, walking in and putting them on the indicated dresser before watching him again with his red and blue eyes. Naruto paused, glancing back at him, before he went back to beating the crap out of his bag, frowning as he did so. "What is it, Kakashi?" 

"You're not telling me everything about these headaches." 

"I have the feeling you already know, Mr Secretive." Naruto muttered, kicking the bag before turning to look at Kakashi, arms crossed over his chest. "You've kept a shit load from me, from Obito's death to Rin's disappearance to your involvement in ANBU. I don't know anything about you, yet you expect me to spill everything to you? Let me have my secrets if you're going to have yours. Now get out."

Kakashi flinched, looking away from the blonde as he walked out, closing the door behind him. Naruto glared at the door, before he groaned, gritting his teeth and running his hand through his hair before he punched the bag harshly, wincing as skin broke and his knuckles started to bleed. "Fuck it all..." 

* * *

Sakura sat on a swing with Neji, looking at the snow as it fell to the ground; it had been falling all week since school had let out for winter break. She hadn't seen Sasuke or Naruto at all during the holiday so far, and she worried that they were locked away from everyone. Sasuke did that often before, but this year...She had a feeling Sasuke wasn't talking to anyone because it was a bad month for him. The month Itachi died...

She sighed a little, looking over at Neji who seemed to be thinking himself. Hinata finally got to come home, though she was stuck in bed all day doing light things for her; from card games to dice games to playing Trivial Pursuit with her father and sister every day. Neji hated seeing her like that, and so barely went to visit her. "...Has Gaara been over to your place lately?" The pinkette asked then, and Neji glanced at her before nodding. 

"He's there right now. Hinata and he are talking about something..." He sighed softly, looking at the sky as it continued to snow. "...Sakura things aren't going well." He mumbled softly. "Hinata was able to come home but she's not getting any better. She won't even be able to go to school. And I don't know why she's like this...Why they can't help her..." He frowned, closing his eyes tightly. "It's so...So annoying. So...tiring. I feel so helpless in this...I'm watching her die and I can't even be next to her. What kind of cousin does that make me?" 

"You're a wonderful cousin...You don't want to see her in pain. What person wants to see family in pain, Neji?" He sighed and she squeezed his hand she had a firm grip on, sighing quietly. "I've heard about Kimimaro." 

"How's his condition?" 

"Neutral." Sakura sighed quietly. "He's not getting better, but he's not getting any worse either. He's stuck in a half-in half-out world right now, and they don't know how to help him in the hospital." She then blinked. "Kabuto left the school." 

"What?" Neji blinked, eyes widening. "Why?" 

"Tsunade requested him to. He left willingly, but he's been stalking certain students and teachers. They're thinking of calling the police soon if he keeps it up." 

"I hope they do." Neji muttered, frowning. "If he's not put away, I don't know what some people might do to him..." Sakura nodded, frowning a little. 

"I know..." 

* * *

Gaara left the Hyuuga Complex with a nod to Hiashi, walking down the sidewalk quietly. As he made his way to his home deeper into the city, he felt as if he wasn't alone and glanced around him, feeling as if someone was hiding from him. He nodded, narrowing his eyes as he noted that there were darker shadows than others before he stopped, and he heard a footstep before silence. "...Come out." Gaara said softly then, and he turned his head to see Kabuto coming out from behind him, watching him quietly. "What are you doing following me?"

"I've heard you've taken many lives before Gaara-kun." Kabuto whispered softly. "And I wanted to know if you wanted to take mine." 

Gaara's eyes narrowed and he turned away from the medic of the school, fists tightening. "No," he whispered quietly, though Kabuto had the feeling that the redhead wasn't talking to him. "I will not take the life that rightfully belongs to Sasuke...Sasuke will take this man's life...He has done nothing to me..." His ice green eyes shifted to look at him, and Kabuto watched him with a mixture of fear and anticipation. "...Find yourself another murderer, Yakushi; I will not take a life without reason or will of my own." He turned away again and started to walk, but felt a hand tug his shoulder back. He steadied himself, ripping his shoulder from Kabuto's grip and turned around, glaring at him. "Accept my answer and leave. Why are you so desperate to die?"

"Because a life that has me turning twisted and into an exact replica to the man I had despised but loved so...That is not a life to live, is it?" Gaara stared at him for a moment, before he smiled the tiniest bit. 

"But I'm living that life myself, Yakushi. And I'm still living." He then reached forward, grabbing a fistful of his shirt and pulling him forward. "Now why don't you ask this question to a young man you ruined the life of yourself...And see if you're still standing by the time you see his smile? For it is not my responsibility, nor in my power to kill you. Your blood is not mine to deal with accordingly, sadly. Though I think I'll watch as he kills you...He does hate you very much." He smiled softly then, and Kabuto's face paled in his normal cowardice, before Gaara shoved him back and continued on his way. 

The young boy listened to his pants behind him, before he turned and walked the other way quickly. The redhead sighed softly then, closing his eyes as he paused in his step. 'Temari would say I'm getting better...But it's far from that...' He thought, opening his eyes and looking up at the sky.

'I'm just getting subtle...' 

* * *

It was tradition.

That's what Sakura had told him when he had refused to go to the Christmas party. It was tradition to come and respect the dead, living for another day. But why would he want to go when he would see _his_ picture? He didn't want to see it...Not this year. Last year he thought he was going to be fine; he had been getting better. But then he spent the time on the old family farm, standing in the Uchiha cemetery and feeling the most alone he had ever felt in his life. And he knew that he was not going to be alright. 

Sasuke knew there was something wrong with him; something deep in his mind was twisted or bent or unbalanced in some way, and he was not 'normal' in Laymen's terms. He had some type of psychosis or neurosis, he wasn't sure which. He could see a doctor if he had wanted to and had the type of money to do so, but he didn't want to find out what was wrong with him. He had been twisted since he was a child; he had let himself believe that he wasn't killing people when he cut through them, just putting them in a very deep sleep. He let himself be used...He let himself get deeper into the snake's hold. 

Hell, deep down inside of him, past the terror and the scarring of that event, Sasuke knew he let himself be raped. Because he didn't care. Because he couldn't possibly care. He was out of it...Had always been out of it.

He didn't even know what it felt like the die...To feel like you're loosing someone close to you to mental problems or memories...He had lost someone to death, and he was depressed about it. Manically depressed about it; he could admit to that. But if he remembered taking life...And how empty he had been taking life...

He had refused to go because he didn't want to fall into a manic depression with the others. He wanted to learn more about the files, about the strange abilities that he saw many people with in his daily life. 

And he wanted to avoid seeming heartless as people cried about their dead loved ones, describing how it happened. Because even though he felt a twinge of something in the back of his mind, he truly felt...Nothing. 

* * *

"He's not coming."

Sakura looked at Naruto who was sitting on the stairs by the front door worriedly, looking at him with a quiet frown. "He said he was busy and that he couldn't come..." She frowned a little, looking to the side. "...He told me to say to you 'Sorry'." 

"Thank you." Naruto mumbled, looking out the side window quietly. "But I knew that already the moment you walked in and looked at me." He then turned to look at her, and smiled. "I'll just wait here to see if he changes his mind, though." 

* * *

The Uchiha winced as he heard slamming on his door, before he rushed to it, yanking it open to see a pissed off Ino standing there, hands on her hips and nostrils flaring; a habit she had when she was angry beyond all recognition. "SASUKE THEODORE UCHIHA WHY HAVE YOU NOT CONTACTED A SINGLE ONE OF US DURING THE ENTIRE MONTH OF DECEMBER?" She screamed, and Sasuke winced, looking at her oddly. Sakura peeked from around her fuming blonde friend, smiling weakly.

"Can we come in?" 

"Will you not yell at me if I let you in?"

"I'll restrain her." Sasuke nodded, stepping to the side and the two girls walked in, Sakura closing the door calmly behind her. They slipped out of their slippers quickly, Sakura leading Ino to the couch where she sat the blonde down, watching Sasuke as he sat down on the armchair, curling into it. "So...Why haven't you spoken to any of us? Why did you avoid the Christmas party? And why are you trying to avoid the New Year's party?" 

"I don't want to be around people right now." He mumbled, looking to the side. He glanced back at her. "It's a hard time for me." She nodded, but frowned and he waited for her to speak. 

"Sasuke-kun...It's not healthy for you to avoid us the _entire_ month. Naruto's doing no better than you; he needs to at least see you. Did you know he didn't even celebrate Christmas with us? He sat on the stairs by the door the entire night, waiting to see if you had changed your mind." She frowned a little. "When midnight came and you still hadn't come, he joined us, but only to wish us a Merry Christmas, have a glass of wine, and then he went to bed." Sasuke was looking away from her now, and Sakura leaned forward, placing a hand on his knee. 

"Sakura what do you want me to say? I'm sorry I didn't come? I'm sorry I don't want you guys to see me when I'm like this?" He looked at her, frowning. "I'm trying really hard to figure some things out...This is really hard for me, though." 

"I'd imagine." Sakura said softly, looking into his dark obsidian eyes and seeing the struggle within them; he looked to be in such mental pain. "At least come to the New Year's party." She said then, smiling a little. "We'll all be good and leave you alone; Naruto just wants to see you. He hasn't seen you at all since he went out, and I know he's been worried about you." She sighed a little, running fingers through her short hair. 

Ino spoke up then. "Sasuke, I know you like to be antisocial and this is probably the worst month for you ever because your big brother died, but that does NOT give you the right to avoid the guy who loves you...Or at least thinks he does." 

"He _what_?" Sasuke's eyes widened and Ino blinked in surprise as well; Sakura looked in curiously. "He can't love me...He's never told me that. Hell, I don't even know if I love _him_..." 

"...Figure that out." Sakura said then, an idea coming to her at that moment. "Figure it out at the party. Figure out if you love him or whatever; you guys need to see each other." She smiled a little. "Come on...I've never seen a couple more depressed than this one...And I hate seeing you guys so depressed when you used to be so cute. Weird, but cute." She wrapped her arms around his shoulders, forehead resting against his neck. "Please?" 

Sasuke sat there for a moment, before wrapping thin arms around his sister figure. "Alright..."


	13. New Years Blast

A/N: So I finally managed to update this thing!  
Does this mean I'm out of that writer's block I've been suffering from? ...I seriously hope so.  
Now, if there are any grammar errors, please don't tell me. It's nice that you guys want to tell me if I make big mistakes; little mistakes bother me, though. Spelling errors happen; I'm quick at typing, probably typing 60 words per minute or something along those lines. Maybe more. I don' always watch how I'm spelling things; I look over briefly and then I'm done.  
Now then, onto the story! I'm sorry I've kept you waiting. _(bows)_

Disclaimer: Naruto and Co. belong to Masashi Kishimoto. Dick Clark belongs to himself. The Haruno Death Glare belongs to me. Nicolas Flamel belongs to JK Rowling?

* * *

Sakura had come over to his apartment to help him get ready since, as the pinkette so 'endearingly' stated, Sasuke had no sens

Sakura had come over to his apartment to help him get ready since, as the pinkette so 'endearingly' stated, Sasuke had no sense of fashion whatever; Ino had agreed so quickly that Sasuke felt a little of his pride whither and die on the inside. So he now, on the afternoon of New Years Eve, watched as Sakura raided through his closet, clothes flying out of it as if being catapulted onto random spots of the floor, the dark and dangerous mutterings of a girl in 'girly' mode being heard within the depths of his closet.

Ino sat next to him, reading a magazine and making a few comments once in a while about clothes that Sasuke had worn in the past that the Uchiha had forgotten he even owned, let alone knew existed. He blinked as the Haruno girl appeared with an outfit in hand, glaring green daggers of ice at him. "…Do I want to know why I'm receiving the Haruno Death Glare?"

"BECAUSE YOUR WARDROBE IS EMO."

"….I'm sorry?" She just scoffed, tossing him the clothes and he looked at them oddly, before hearing her snort. "…What?"

"Don't look at it like it's going to bite your face off already." Sakura said, smiling lightly before going over to him and yanking up his current shirt, making him squawk in a un-Sasuke-fashion. She giggled as he flushed and slapped at her arms before she managed to pull the shirt up, revealing his skinny, pale chest. "…How are you capable of maim and torture when you're an anorexic stick?"

"I'm a special anorexic stick." Sasuke muttered, pulling on the new shirt. He took that moment to look at it, staring at it. "…I have a shirt with a band name on it? And it's white?"

"I was shocked when I found it; it was that little gasp you heard."

"I heard many little gasps, and most of them of horror."

"…I found some old clothes." Sasuke sighed, shaking his head and taking his pants off before Sakura tried to do it for him; the Uchiha might've been gay, but that did NOT mean that he wanted Sakura anywhere near his crotch. He wasn't comfortable with anyone near there anyhow. He slipped on a familiar pair of black pants, zipping them up quietly and standing up to go assess himself in the full length mirror of his bathroom when Sakura wrapped her arms around him, putting on a belt.

"Where'd the belt come from?"

"My closet; you're hips are slim enough for you to wear it."

"Oh great, I'm turning emo; I'm wearing women's clothing." Sakura laughed at this and Sasuke smiled the tiniest bit to hear her smile, sighing as she fussed with his hair for a moment before he went to go look at himself. He glanced at the mirror, eyes widening a little and Sakura came behind him, resting her hands on his shoulders and smiling as she rested her chin on his right shoulder. "Told ya you should let me decide everything you wear from now on." She said lightly, eyes closed for a moment. "Especially when you need a hair cut…"

Sasuke's hair had gotten too long for Sakura's tastes (though her own boyfriend's hair was longer than hers. Suited Neji more than Sasuke apparently), and so she had gotten her hair cutting kit, sat him down after forcing him to take a shower, and cut his hair to an appropriate length for him. It was shorter than before, the front bangs that had once fallen short of his shoulder falling only a little below his chin, the hair in the back cut shorter and choppier than before. (When Sakura had learned that his hair naturally spiked in the back, she nearly had a giggle fit that Sasuke still didn't understand.)

He adjusted the white shirt, staring at the band name for a moment and the logo art before looking into Sakura's eyes in the mirror's reflection, offering a weak smile. "That's what I like to see." She said, hugging him briefly before pulling away from him, wiping away invisible dust from his close and adjusting the belt before taking his hand, leading him out of the bathroom. "I think we need to get you outside a bit too so that you can remember what the outside world is like…"

"No." Sasuke stopped her, looking at her as he slipped his hand deftly out of her soft grip. "No, I…I think I want to stay inside for right now." He looked out the window, frowning a little at the grey clouds threatening snow or ice rain; he suspected the rain, as it had been raining more than snowing lately. "…I don't think I could handle the outside world right now…When the sun's still up." He then turned to Sakura and Ino, the blonde having come out to join them after noticing that Sasuke wasn't going outside. "I'll see you guys at the party…?"

"I'll come pick you up." Sakura promised, looking at him quietly. "Think about everything we've talked about these past couple of days, alright? We all miss you…You may not think it, but you're a strength for everyone…You're surviving and you've lived through a hell that no one else here can even comprehend understanding." She reached out, touching his cheek gently and he closed obsidian eyes. "…Don't lock yourself out again…Not from us."

"…Alright." He murmured, sighing before looking at her. "…See you later, then."

"Later."

* * *

Sakura and Ino walked back to their apartment, the blonde making small comments about the make-over that Sakura pulled on Sasuke, but Sakura wasn't paying attention. She was thinking about Sasuke…How he was acting. It was worrying her…Like how he seemed to be loosing his emotions as he turned more and more into himself. Last year he was quiet, but he had an attitude and a personality. As she looked at him now, though…She barely saw one.

"Sakura?"

The pinkette jumped as Ino waved her hand in front of her face, and she turned to the blonde, staring at her before realizing what she was waiting for. She laughed uneasily as Ino indicated to the door, unlocking the apartment and letting the blonde in, following quietly after. "What's got you jumbled in your thoughts?"

"…Sasuke."

"Uchiha is being an emo." Ino said, rolling her eyes and smiling. "Nothing to worry about."

"Unless he starts turning suicidal."

"If Sasuke isn't already suicidal, something is seriously wrong with the world. The guy knows too much for his own good." Ino said, looking at Sakura seriously. "The boy is fucked in the head, Sakura. I can see that. He's…Different than the rest of us. Abnormal. It's like there's something about him that separates him from the rest of us…We can all accept that. He's strange, and it makes him Sasuke. He's killed people and can still kill people, and it makes him Chidori. Nothing is going to change any of this. Sasuke's a strange combination of two personalities that are strong and warring over him. He's thinking oddly; you can tell by his eyes…How they're turning blank. He's…He's shutting down."

"…You're a lot more observant than given credit for."

Ino grinned, flipping back her blonde hair. "Sakura, dear, it's my job. I _am_ a spy."

"A celibate spy."

"Why does everyone point that out?"

"Because you act like a hoe and in reality you're more of a virgin than a nun, Ino." Sakura said, and Ino sniffed before the two girls started to laugh, Ino walking into the kitchen to grab some food. Sakura then sighed, looking out the window as she thought about what Ino had said…

…And realizing she was right.

* * *

He wasn't coming out of his room.

Kakashi sighed, running his fingers through his silver hair before he pulled out a bobby pin from his pocket, having taken to the habit of carrying one with him everywhere. He then walked over to the door, bending the bobby pin as he did so and knelt beside the knob, putting the bobby pin into the key slot. He had lost his key to Naruto's room a month ago, and it had frustrated the English teacher to no end when he learned that Naruto had found it and destroyed it. Little brat.

He listened quietly before grinning as he heard a click, pushing open the door and looking in to see the sight that he'd been seeing every day since the week of New Years started. He sighed, walking into the room and looking at the curled up blonde as he stared out his window, looking at the sun as it slowly started its trek down, ending the day and bringing about the night that all couples and families celebrated for the new year. He was still in his pyjamas, which consisted of the oldest, faded orange shirt that still fit the Uzumaki child, and his black boxer shorts.

Sighing, the guardian shoved at his ward, and Naruto glared at him with angry red eyes which made Kakashi take an unconscious step back, before the blonde took a deep breath through his nose, eyes closed. "…Sorry," he muttered, sitting up and rubbing his head. "…What do you want? I thought I locked that door."

"I thought I told you I was a ninja."

"No, you're in a gang. You're not a ninja, no matter how many times your happy pills tell you that you are."

"I am not on happy pills Naruto." Kakashi rolled his eyes before sitting on the bed next to him, looking at him quietly. "…It's New Years Eve. Everyone will be heading over here for the party…I hear Sasuke's coming." He watched as blue eyes widened after having faded from red and Naruto looked over at him in surprise. "Yeah…Sakura and Ino convinced him to get out of the apartment and come over for this party since he missed the Christmas one."

"…You're not just lying to get me out of my room, am I?"

"If I wanted to do that, I'd tell you that Sasuke was wrapped up in naught but ribbon in the living room with a tag that says 'For Naruto' on it, you retard." Naruto snorted and Kakashi grinned, seeing the old Naruto coming out slightly from the shell he created. "No come on; go get a shower since you stink, and then get dressed and help me create the feast. We're feeding a lot of people."

"Are the twins and Tayuya coming too?"

"Yeah; they've got some news on Kimmimaro."

"I thought he was in a neutral phase."

"Apparently something happened last night when Tayuya went to visit. Now go shower while I Febreze© your room so that it smells more like…Freshness than the utter stank of a dirty teenager."

"Thanks Kakashi. That means a whole lot." The blonde rolled his eyes and Kakashi smirked, shrugging his shoulders as he watched Naruto leave to take his shower before he stretched his arms above his head, scratching his chest as he looked around the messy room and bloodied bandages on his dresser. "Now to play house maid…Damn…"

* * *

Naruto switched the water on, stripping of his clothes and throwing them into the hamper as he stepped into the scalding shower, hissing as the water hit his chilled skin. He stood there for a moment, eyes squeezed shut as he got used to the feeling of the water on his skin, burning him slightly before he ran his fingers through his hair, soaking it as he grabbed the shampoo, grimacing at the length. "I need a serious hair cut." He muttered, pushing his bangs in front of his hair and blinking at the blonde blob that obscured his vision. "Maybe I can get Sakura to come over…Or Kakashi could do it." He sighed, shaking his head from his useless thoughts and scrubbing the shampoo into his hair, eyes closed.

He thought of Sasuke as he showered, wondering how the pale boy was. He hadn't spoken to any of them in a while, becoming a complete hermit; Naruto would get voice mail more than anything lately, which was why he stopped calling. If Sasuke didn't want to talk to him, then Naruto wouldn't call. But he did miss the boy dearly…Even though he was broken himself, Naruto felt…Whole when he was with him, because he was helping him and forgetting about his own problems. It was weak, how he was dealing with his history; he wanted to forget it more than remember it, and he remembered that he had once told Itachi that Sasuke had the right to remember his past if he wanted to, and that the older brother didn't have the right to block it from him.

"I'm a hypocrite." Naruto muttered, wiping the soap from his eyes and looking forward as the water continued to beat down his back, slipping down bronzed skin. "I'm a complete hypocrite…"

* * *

"We can't kill him Father!"

The Aburame household seemed to shake for a moment as something inside crashed, before all fell quiet again and neighbours continued to ignore the ruckus.

Inside, Shino was glaring at his father Shibi, thinking the man to be utterly heartless for his son to want to end the life of someone he had grown close to over the year. "Shino, he has killed people."

"Not lately. He hates that he's killed people in the past; I know he has. He's talked to me about it; nightmares that he has and the feeling that someone's around him all the time, screaming at him that they'll never forgive him…I don't think we should kill someone that regrets the murders he did!" Shino stood his ground, green eyes narrowed as he looked over the rim of his high collared dark green turtleneck; he had been getting ready for the party when his father had told him that they were going to dispense of Sasuke that night on his way to Naruto's home. "He's avoided actual battle because he doesn't want to snap. He's trying to change."

"A leopard cannot change its spots, Shino." Shibi said harshly and Shino narrowed his eyes at the saying, biting his bottom lip. "It is not possible. Uchiha and Sabaku are two creatures that will always be killers…They will never change from that."

"Sasuke only killed because he didn't understand what he was doing; Gaara killed because he idolized Chidori when he was younger and so he followed in his footsteps." Shino tried to reason, looking at his father pleadingly. "…Please Father; Sasuke is not the same as he once was."

"Shino, a wise man once said that if you give a murderer a purpose, a target and any sort of means, they will easily kill again. It is in their nature; they are sociopaths. They don't understand pain or guilt or empathy." Shibi sighed, looking away from his son. "You are too young to understand, Shino…You cannot possibly grasp the grand scheme of life within the Uchiha boy. You do not understand what goes on through his mind since you are not trained to see what happens."

"And neither are you. You're just FBI." Shino looked away from his father, eyes narrowed as he glared at the flooring. "You hold no sympathy towards those who wish to repent. You believe that once they kill, they will only progress until they turn serial. Not everyone is like that." He looked back at his father. "They're not like that. I know them better than you could possibly know them. I interact with them; talk to them; share opinions. I know what goes through their heads. You only know their records." Shino then looked at his father again, sighing softly. "If Sasuke does take another life with malicious intent, I will be the one to end his, Father. But I don't think I need to take a weapon to Sasuke. Or Gaara. I think they've changed." He looked at him pleadingly then, green eyes begging. "Please…Let me handle this. Don't send for the others; let me handle this. They're my age…They're my generation. And so they'll be my problem if you're right and they do kill someone ten years from now."

Shibi stared at his son for a moment, sighing and looking away from him, burying his face into the high collar of his jacket that he had put on when telling his son the plan. "I'll call the others off." He muttered, and Shino bowed in a silent thank you. "But it is your responsibility to watch Chidori and Shukaku…Do you understand?"

"Completely."

"Good…Now go to your party." Shibi sighed, looking at his son fondly. "You're still young…Enjoy your night. Don't let an old man's worries take away your childhood."

"If I see Ino's father or Chouji's, Father…"

"They won't be there."

"Shikamaru's father…?"

"Nor will him." Shibi indicated for him to continue to get ready and Shino looked at him warily for a moment before he left to go back to his room, finishing his preparations for the party. Shibi sighed, pulling out a cell phone and dialling a number, placing it to his ear. "Yamanaka…Tell Nara and Akimichi that the plan is called off…I'm trusting my son on this one." Shibi frowned as he heard the other man, sighing. "I know I'm probably throwing this into the dogs and everything's going to go to hell, but at the moment I could really care less. My son is adamant about this…He knows these two better than we do, and they're children. We can't convict them of anything…They're minors in this city." He paused, rolling his eyes. "I understand that, Yamanaka. But still. I'm…Going to let Shino take care of this." He looked at his son's bedroom door to see him talking to someone on the house phone, sounding happier than he had before (though the person online probably couldn't tell, Shino spoke in one tone most of the time). "…Let's just trust him this once. He's done well so far."

He smiled then, hanging up as Shino looked over at him with curious eyes, wondering why he was staring. "I trust you…"

* * *

"Whoa! The house looks decent!"

Kakashi looked up from his spot on the couch, closing his green book quietly and standing up as Naruto looked around the place, running his fingers through his now shorter hair. Kakashi had cut it for him earlier, noting that he needed it badly and now it stuck around his head as it always had in its spikes, looking better than it had before. Before he looked like a hobo; now he looked like a normal teenager that was looking at the cleaned house with awe.

"I try." Kakashi said with a wry tone, and Naruto grinned at him lightly; Kakashi glad to see the normal Naruto back. He watched as the blonde fixed his blue long sleeved shirt with a white over shirt, black jeans pooling around his feet which were in normal white socks. "I don't think I see a speck of orange on you." The English teacher commented then, and Naruto grinned, pulling up a necklace with an orange swirl as the pendent, letting it rest on his chest lightly. "Ah. There it is."

"You know me, Kakashi; can't live without the orange."

"It is after all the love of you life." He caught the randomly thrown porcelain figurine of an angel holding a child and looked at it, before glancing at Naruto. "This was Rin's. Be careful with it."

"Sorry." Naruto walked over, taking the figurine back and looking at it quietly, before placing it where it had been before, staring at the cabinet filled with little figurines of angels and children. "…Rin was secretly very girly, wasn't she?"

"It was her quirk; she could beat the crap out of Obito and I any time she wanted, but as soon as she saw one of these things, she turned into this sweet innocent girl who hated the mention of someone punching someone else because they touched their girl the wrong way." Kakashi smiled as he thought about his lost friend, before looking at the door as the bell rang. "First guest."

"I know," Naruto said, smirking before walking over to the door, opening it and revealing a bored looking Shikamaru with Neji and Chouji at his sides. "Ah, my three recruiters."

"The three people that can stand your mood swings are more like it." Neji commented lightly, taking a look at Naruto and noting that he looked better. He smiled a little to the Uzumaki, walking into the house with Shikamaru and the Akimichi who looked around for food, finding none. "Chouji, you know we wait for everyone to come before we eat anything." Neji reminded him, and the larger boy sighed, nodding sadly. "Maybe Kakashi will let you grab a small bag of chips from the cupboard if you beg."

"Maybe!" Chouji agreed, walking quickly over to the teacher who just sighed and grinned as Chouji went to his knees and started begging, pretending to ignore him playfully. Neji watched the exchange for a moment, before looking back at Naruto who closed the door after Shikamaru had gotten in all the way, noting that he looked kind of fidgety. "Nervous about something, Naruto?" Neji asked, and Naruto glanced at him, blinking before he grinned a little, shrugging.

"Kind of." He replied, looking back at the door and sighing a little. "Sasuke's supposed to be coming."

"That's good, right? Ino's been very angry at him lately." Neji rolled his pale eyes as he thought about the blonde, remembering going over to their apartment one day to enter into one of her 'Sasuke' rants that she had been having lately. "The girl really cares about all of us, doesn't she?"

"We're family." Shikamaru stated, looking at the two of them. "Her mom's the only one she's got since her dad's never around, so we're the closest family she has. She holds us higher than she does her parents." He sighed, scratching the back of his head. "So when one of her 'brothers' decides to be a hermit emo, she's going to freak out." He then sighed, walking over to Chouji and Kakashi as the silver haired man tried to keep his laughing in check, asking bluntly if the Akimichi boy could have a small bag of chips; Kakashi nodded and the two went to the kitchen to retrieve the treat, Chouji complaining loudly that Kakashi was mean to him.

Neji glanced one more time at Naruto, who just smiled and shrugged, before he walked over to the couch where Kakashi was sitting, sitting on it and curling in it comfortably.

The doorbell rang again and Naruto went over to answer it, seeing Gaara, Temari and Kankuro all standing there, Hinata in a wheelchair pushed by Gaara. Naruto smiled widely as the sickly Hyuuga girl, stepping aside to let her and the others enter, nodding to them quietly and closing the door after them.

"The house looks wonderful, Kakashi." Hinata said meekly, and Kakashi smiled at the girl, nodding in his thanks. She then looked over at Neji, who stared at her quietly with wide eyes. "Neji-niisan!" She said happily, holding her arms out for a hug. He hesitated for a moment, before walking over, crouching down and hugging her tightly. "I'm glad you've come over to me…"

"I'm sorry, Hinata-sama…"

"Don't be."

* * *

The majority of the guests were here and the TV had been turned on, playing a marathon of movies when Tenten suggested it, Lee agreeing almost immediately. Tsunade, Jiraiya and Sasori were talking to Anko, Gai and Asuma, Kurenai helping Kakashi in the kitchen. The Hatake/Uzumaki household was a busy place, most of the teenage members were already there; Hinata, Gaara and Neji were all hanging around together, talking quietly and watching the movie, Temari was with Tayuya, Sakon and Ukon, playing around with Sakon's light blonde hair and wondering why he dyed it purple in the first place. Kankuro was watching the movie with Tenten and Lee, Shikamaru and Chouji lazing about on a free couch and talking about something utterly pointless. The other Shino had come a little late with Kiba, the two going to see Hinata immediately with Akamaru barking excitedly.

Naruto sighed, looking at his watch; it was already 10 o'clock, and Sakura, Ino and Sasuke weren't there yet. He didn't know if he should really be expecting Sasuke coming at all, but he didn't want to give his hopes up either; if Sasuke did come, then things would be normal again in some way…And that was a comfort that Naruto needed. He looked up as Zabuza passed him, holding a bottle of beer. He stared at the man for a moment, the gym teacher staring back before Zabuza nodded and walked over to the other teachers talking, leaving the blonde alone. He sighed, closing his eyes and resting his head on his knees when the doorbell rang.

Getting up, he brushed his pants off and walked over to it, opening it. He blinked, looking at Kisame oddly as he was grinning widely. "As your spy, I was invited to join the party." He said. "Oh, and there's three strays behind me." He walked inside, Naruto moving to the side before he looked back outside and saw the three he had been waiting for…The one he had been waiting for.

Sakura and Ino smiled at him, both wearing a dress that was their respective favourite colour and shoes that were fitting to the weather outside. "Hey Naruto!" Sakura greeted, reaching forward and hugging him, kissing his cheek. "Neji already here?"

"He's with Hinata and Gaara."

"Hinata-chan's here? Great! Thanks!" She hugged him again before slipping out of her shoes and walking over to the three, hugging Hinata tightly in greeting. Ino then stepped up to Naruto, hugging him and kissing the opposite cheek that Sakura had kissed.

"Hey Naruto. You're looking better." She commented, grinning as she looked into shocked blue eyes that stared at her almost vacantly. "I'm glad you seem to be feeling better. I'll go bother Shikamaru and Chouji now." She waved, before walking into the house, dropping to her knees next to the boys and swapping Shikamaru over the head for falling asleep, berating him for being antisocial. Naruto didn't pay them any attention though as he looked out at the last one outside.

"…You actually came." He said softly, and Sasuke nodded, scuffing his black sneakers against the ice slicked pavement before he felt a hand grab his wrist and was dragged into a strong chest, two arms wrapping around him tightly as Naruto buried his face into his hair. "You're actually here…"

"…Yeah…" Sasuke muttered, slowly wrapping his arms around Naruto and hugging him back. "…I'm here now…"

* * *

"So how's your month been?" Naruto asked, sitting on an armchair with Sasuke in his lap securely, arms wrapped around his waist loosely to let the Uchiha escape his grasp whenever he wanted to. Sasuke was leaning against Naruto's shoulder, eyes closed softly as he listened to the conversation, before he realized Naruto was talking to him.

"…I've been reading some things my Aniki left behind." Sasuke said softly, glancing over at Kakashi as he came out with plates of food, putting it on the dinning room short table that the feast was always on every year. "Other than that…It hasn't been very productive."

"I guess I can't ask about what Itachi left you." Naruto said, smiling a little as Sasuke looked at him meaningfully. "Alright, I won't ask." He then sighed, burying his face into Sasuke's neck and breathing deeply, taking in the familiar scent that was Sasuke's very own. "…Why wouldn't you answer my calls?"

"…I ignored everyone." Sasuke muttered softly. "So it's not like I was avoiding you. I just didn't want to talk to anyone. Ino bursting into my apartment screaming was the first contact I had had in a while." Naruto snorted at the image, Ino grinning widely from her place on the floor by Hinata's feet, playing with Tenten's hair since the girl was feeling girly. "I'm sorry I didn't call you…"

"It's fine; I was no better." Naruto sighed, hugging the Uchiha closer to him and looking over his shoulder to everyone as they talked and laughed and acted _normal_…And it was good to see. Itachi was missing of course, as were others like Rin, Obito…Haku…But overall, the entire family was there…

And Naruto loved it.

* * *

"That feast was amazing!" Chouji said happily, patting his tummy and sighing in bliss. Shikamaru grinned, rolling his grey eyes as he finished off his handful of chips, watching as Sasuke searched for the channel with the ball dropping. "…Why do we watch a ball drop every year anyhow?"

"Because it shows the beginning of a new year in some strange way." Kakashi answered, watching as Sasuke found the New York Times Square one with Dick Clark. "…How is that guy still standing?"

"He's secretly Nicolas Flamel and the holder of the Philosopher's Stone." Sasuke muttered sarcastically and Kakashi laughed, looking over to see Sasuke smiling the tiniest bit; the first sign of his enjoyment in over a year. The dark boy leaned back against the leader of Bijuu, making himself comfortable and watching the crowds as they waited for the countdown, looking at the timer in the corner. "Ball drops in three minutes."

"Fun." Naruto commented, wrapping his arms around Sasuke's waist quietly and holding onto him, chin resting on his slim shoulder. "What's your new year's resolution?"

"…To get over Aniki." Sasuke said softly, looking at Naruto. "And spend my life for me." Naruto smiled a little, Sakura going 'awww' at the statement which caused Sasuke to through the closest cushion at her.

"Sasuke-kun's being mean! He's being mean and throwing things at me!" Sakura squealed, hiding behind Neji. Neji smirked, rolling his eyes and ruffling up her hair. "Now Neji's ganging up on me! What's the world coming to?!"

"Sakura shut up, you're insane." Ino stated, which caused the pinkette to throw the cushion at the blonde which started a small pillow war between the two girls when Kurenai suddenly whistled, causing everyone to still.

"…Count down's starting."

"Oh crap, seriously?!" Everyone gathered around the couches where the majority of the people sat, watching with rapt attention as the timer showed that there were thirty seconds left….Twenty….Ten…

"Nine…"

"Eight…"

"Seven…"

"Six…"

"Five!"

"Four!"

"Three"

"Two!" Naruto and Sasuke looked at each other, Naruto smiling at him quietly and Sasuke's heart seemed to hammer in his chest at their sudden proximity…

"One!"

"HAPPY NEW YEARS!"

'_I think that I…'_ Sasuke started to think as Naruto leaned forward and kissed him softly, closing his eyes and kissing back just as softly. _'…That I love him…' _

They separated, smiling softly to each other and turned to wish everyone else a happy New Year. Sasuke was hugging Sakura when a sudden explosion happened outside and the foundation of the house rocked unsteadily before it settled itself. Kakashi ran to the window, looking outside to see two figures outside throwing a note card over a blown up area just down the street. His eyes widened suddenly, his mouth dropping open. "No…"

"Kakashi?" Naruto called out, walking over to him, the rest of Bijuu behind him. "Kakashi what…?" He looked outside the window, seeing the same sight, his eyes widening. "NO!"

Before anyone could say anything, Naruto bolted out of the house, running down the street; Sasuke followed after him wordlessly, which caused everyone else to run outside after the two teens, Naruto crying out 'No' and Sasuke trying to catch up to his boyfriend.

They finally got to the sight of the explosion and Naruto dropped to his knees, looking at the sight with a mix of misery and disbelief. Sasuke stopped behind him, about to ask what was wrong before he looked at the area closer, his eyes widening. "…No…"

Akatsuki had destroyed the monument.

Beside the black rubble of the stone, Kakashi picked up a the small note card, and read it allowed, his voice grim and dead.

"Happy New Years, Kyuubi."


	14. Intentions Begin to Be Revealed

A/N: Alright! So the next chapter's up! Not the normal length, but it's what you guys need for this chapter. Technically, the big plot of this entire story is going to be coming up now.  
NOW! Before any of you make any sort of comments about near the end of the chapter; I know who Pein is, I know what's going on in the chapters. I pretty much know everything there is to know about the storyline. I'm ignoring that storyline and going with the one I had planned out two years ago. I do not care what Masashi Kishimoto has shown us recently, I'm going with my original storyline. So there.  
Yeah. Ignore any sort of spelling mistake unless it's a big one. _(laughs)_ Then tell me I messed up.

Disclaimer: Naruto and Co. belong to Masashi Kishimoto.

* * *

"They've gone too far this time." Sakura muttered darkly. The others around her nodded, sitting around Kakashi and Naruto's living room, the quiet around them heavy and dark.

Sasuke was sitting on the arm of the chair Naruto sat on, holding his hand quietly. The blonde had been quiet the entire time since they had gotten back, causing worry for the Uchiha boy. He squeezed his hand softly, Naruto looking up at him and smiling weakly, squeezing his hand back.

"What are we going to do though? Would this be considered a declaration of war?"

"They don't want a war. They want a revolution." Neji said, looking at Ino who had spoken up. "This could be considered an attack on us, but we'd have to talk to them to see what their intentions were."

"Why can't gangs be unorganized and plain violent instead of little businesses?" Tenten muttered darkly, crossing her arms and glaring at the ground. She looked over at Lee who placed a hand on her shoulder, smiling at her reassuringly. She sighed, leaning into her friend's embrace, looking at the others. "Sorry…I'm frustrated."

"Your mother's name was on there." Sakura said softly. "That monument was close to you just like it was close to Kakashi and Naruto…And Sasuke." Sasuke looked over at her, eyes narrowed in question. "Itachi's name was on there as well." She explained softly, and Sasuke's eyes widened at the realization.

"We can't do anything." Shikamaru said then, looking at everyone before looking at the adults, staring at Kakashi meaningfully. "We need to arrange a meeting, though, so that we can learn their intentions. Personally, I believe they destroyed the monument to piss us all off and cause us to attack, giving them full rights to attack to their fullest." He frowned. "Meaning that they could use the same weapons they used ten years ago."

"We don't need a repeat of that." Kakashi muttered, touching his red eyes quietly in memory of that. "That could lead to the deaths of a lot of younger people. Gangs aren't ruled by adults anymore; we're controlled by mere children." He glanced at Naruto who was looking at him, before the blonde looked away, and the English teacher sighed softly. "Neji, contact their Contactor. Arrange a meeting with their leader and myself."

"Why not Naruto?"

"Naruto won't be able to control his rage." Kakashi muttered, looking at the blonde again as his eyes were squeezed shut, his teeth gritted tightly; fangs were seen. Sasuke blinked, eyes wide at the feral appearance of his boyfriend, reaching a free hand forward and running his fingers through his hair hesitatingly. Naruto glanced up, his eyes red, and the entire Bijuu group gasped quietly. "He's still trying to regain control of Kyuubi…"

"He's unintentionally being a hard bastard to control." Naruto muttered. "But he's calmed around Sasuke for some reason."

'_Is that why Naruto was attracted to me when he first saw me?'_ Sasuke thought, running his fingers through Naruto's hair and watching as his eyes faded back to their soft blue. _'Is that why Aniki and he were such close friends…? Because Kyuubi is relaxed around us? We both share the sharingan…Is it the sharingan?' _He sighed softly to himself, ignoring his thoughts and bringing himself back to the conversation at hand.

"Sasuke will not be able to participate with this current mission." Kakashi was saying. Sasuke blinked in confusion, and the Hatake smiled a little, understanding he missed the mission details. "The Special Ops, excluding you, will be going with Kisame into one of Akatsuki's bases to learn as much as you can by whatever they leave hanging around there."

"Ah. And I can't go because…?"

"Because you have a side mission of your own that is equally as important, Sasuke." Kakashi said softly, and Sasuke frowned, but nodded. He needed to remember all the documents before he destroyed them, so that Akatsuki could not learn of the testing that ROOT did on people in the city. "Alright. Anything anyone wants to bring up before we go to sleep? It'd be wise for you all to stay here for the night, so that you won't be attacked on your way home; we don't know what Akatsuki is planning."

"I'll have to go back." Kisame said, looking at Kakashi with serious hazel eyes. "If I'm not back, they'll suspect something, and then you'll have one dead spy."

"Understood. Kisame can go home. Anyone else that direly needs to leave?" Kakashi looked around, eyes landing on Sasuke as he stared at him quietly. "Sasuke…?"

"…I'll have to leave early in the morning."

"Take Sakura and Neji with you." Kakashi said softly. "You're a prime target of Akatsuki; you're in their way of something they desperately want to get their hands on."

"I know." Sasuke sighed, running his fingers through his own hair before he felt Naruto tug on his hand and he stood up with the blonde, looking at him.

"…You two go to bed." Kakashi said softly, looking at Naruto's exhausted expression. "We'll figure out sleeping arrangements down here. Sasuke apparently already has his." The Uchiha blushed lightly, and Kakashi smiled fondly before watching the two walk up the stairs to Naruto's room, the door closing quietly.

Meanwhile, up in Naruto's room, Naruto had stripped of his shirt and pants, pulling on his faded orange shirt that he been cleaned and crawling into the bed, looking at Sasuke quietly. The Uchiha stared at him for a moment, standing their awkwardly, before he slipped out of his clothes, and Naruto pointed to his desk chair. There, sitting innocently was a dark blue, overly large shirt that Sasuke borrowed whenever he went over to Naruto's house for sleeping. The dark boy smiled sadly as he noted that it was folded how he folded his shirts, before he slipped it on and crawled into the bed with Naruto, curling against him as Naruto wrapped his arms around him, pulling him close to his chest.

"How early do you have to leave in the morning?"

"Early enough that Akatsuki won't be aware of my movement." Sasuke murmured softly, hands grasping lightly on Naruto's shirt, taking in his soothing scent. The Uzumaki nodded softly, making a soft noise of understanding from the back of his throat before Sasuke leaned forward a little, kissing his throat lightly. Naruto flinched, and Sasuke pulled back, unsure if he did something wrong, before he felt the arms around him tighten and a kiss to the top of his head. "…I don't want to leave you…"

"I know." Naruto murmured softly, looking down at the dark head below his chin. "…But I understand that you have to." Sasuke sighed softly, and Naruto closed his eyes, rubbing his back soothingly. "…Go to sleep, Sasuke. I'll wake you up in time for you to leave."

"…Alright. Good night, Naruto." Naruto smiled softly, listening to his boyfriend's breathing as slowly it evened out, before he sighed quietly himself, staring out the window…

…Only to see a pair of brown eyes staring back at him from the tree across his window.

Naruto stiffened, bringing Sasuke unconsciously closer to him as Hidan opened the window which Naruto foolishly left unlocked, slipping inside. "I see I've finally found you without Kakashi…Though you're holding the Uchiha boy." Hidan looked at Sasuke with distain, nose wrinkling as if he smelt something nasty. "…I have orders to kill him. But I won't." Hidan looked at Naruto softly. "No need to break you."

"You've already done a good job of that." Naruto muttered softly, quiet enough for Sasuke not to hear him but loud enough for Hidan to hear him. "What are you doing here?"

"I thought I'd come see you and wish you a Happy New Years." Hidan murmured, walking over slowly and leaning over the bed, his lips centimetres from Naruto's. "I'm allowed to do that, aren't I?"

"Hidan I don't love you. Not anymore. I never did."

"You once believed you did." The Akatsuki member muttered softly, closing his eyes and brushing his lips against Naruto's. Naruto jerked back unsteadily, causing Sasuke to shift and the two conscious males stiffened, watching the slumbering boy before he settled, sighing softly in his sleep. "…He's like a child."

"He's innocent." Naruto muttered. "I want to keep him that way."

"How can someone who so thoughtlessly took life be innocent?" Hidan murmured softly, reaching forward and threading his fingers lightly through dark raven locks, staring at the contrast against his pale skin. "I've heard stories about Chidori…"

"Chidori is a different person." Naruto muttered quietly, swapping Hidan's hand away carefully, trying not to disturb Sasuke. "Sasuke does not kill people. Orochimaru's Chidori kills people." Hidan snorted softly, unconsciously keeping quiet around the sleeping boy before stepping back and Naruto glared. "There; you've harassed me. Now get out."

"One moment." Hidan said, holding up a hand and taking out a folded piece of paper, holding it out. Naruto looked at him to it, before indicating for him to put it on the dresser. "That's a message from Leader. And," Hidan continued, looking at Naruto meaningfully. "The ones who blew up the monument were not Deidara. Deidara created a bomb and Konan, along with Zetsu. Deidara had nothing to do with it."

"But why did they blow it up in the first place?" Naruto hissed and Hidan shrugged his shoulders lightly. "I know you know, Hidan. You're one of the more trusted members lately."

"I see you've been keeping tabs. Smart." Hidan sighed, looking to the side. "I wish I could tell you, Naruto…But I can't. I value my life a little more than yours." Naruto snorted, looking to the side and Hidan smiled sadly. "…I wish you didn't hate me."

"I think I have every right. Now get out." Naruto hissed and Hidan sighed, nodding and going to the window. He climbed onto the sill, before looking back at Naruto quietly.

"We're trying to save you, Naruto…Understand that." Naruto looked at him in confusion as he jumped back to his branch, closing the window; he then heard a soft murmur and looked down to see a drowsy Sasuke.

"…It's cold…" He murmured, and Naruto smiled shakily, bringing the blankets up to Sasuke's chin and pulling him closer, rubbing his back, making his boyfriend sigh softly and fall back asleep. As he watched him drift back to the land of dreams, Naruto thought about what Hidan had said.

'_Trying to…Save me?'

* * *

__Large hands grasped smaller ones, and Hidan smiled softly at Naruto, kissing his nose. "You ready, Naruto?" _

"_Where are we going? I have to be home at 9 o'clock you know." _

"_You'll be home on time, Naruto." Hidan said softly, looking around before he went into a hotel, nodding to the person at the desk. She smiled, waving to the young blonde with the older platinum. Probably thought Naruto was his cousin or something. "But you promised you'd do something for me before you left, right?" _

"…_You haven't told me what you wanted yet." Naruto said softly, unsurely as he watched Hidan look at the numbers of hotel rooms, before finding what Naruto supposed must've been his. He entered quietly, looking around to see it was a comfortable looking room with one bed and a small TV, a bathroom to his immediate right. "I thought you lived in Venice." _

"_I couldn't very well take you to my home." Hidan said softly, looking at him. "I live with someone who's very rude and doesn't like me much." _

"_Why doesn't he like you?" _

"_He finds my religion kooky." Naruto laughed at that, though he didn't know Hidan's religion very well. Hidan then sat him on a bed, kneeling front of him and placing his hands on his lap, looking at him quietly. "…So…Time to fulfill your promise…" _

"_But what am I going to—Mmf!" Naruto's lips were covered by Hidan's at that moment, a hand on his head as he was slowly leaned back. The younger boy pushed back, looking at Hidan with wide eyes and Hidan smiled softly. _

"_You're going to give me something very precious…That'll forever be mine…And no one else's…" _

"…_I've heard about this from Kakashi…" Naruto said frightfully as Hidan started to kiss his neck softly, his skin turning cold, face white. "He…He called this…" He was cut off with a high pitched squeak as Hidan's hand travelled to somewhere no one had touched before, and he squirmed away, whimpering and trying to get away from him. _

_Kakashi had called this rape…

* * *

_"Naruto…Naruto!"

The blonde's eyes snapped open and he looked up to see Sasuke above him; they had shifted in the night so that the Uchiha rested on top of him, Naruto's hands on the small of his back. His legs were straddling him, his hand on his face while the other was on his chest, keeping him up. "Are you alright?"

"…I'm fine…" Naruto whispered softly, closing his eyes and relaxing as he replaced Hidan's image over him to Sasuke's, relieved to find he didn't mind it at all. He felt Sasuke's hand stroke his cheek quietly, before he opened his eyes and smiled at him comfortingly, dragging him down to rest on his chest and kissing his neck softly, not trying to do anything that would make him uncomfortable. "Why are you up?"

"You were whimpering in your sleep…" Sasuke muttered, closing his eyes and listening to Naruto's heartbeat as it slowed down from its frantic pulse. "…Naruto…" He murmured softly then. Naruto made a noise to show he was listening. "What's that card on your bedside table?"

"Card…?" Naruto thought for a moment before remembering his nightly visitor. "Right!" He got up, Sasuke shifting with him and he leaned over, grabbing the folded note and opening it, reading it; Sasuke sat on his lap, his legs on either side of his hips, hands resting on his lap quietly. The blonde read for a moment, his eyes widening slowly before he looked up at Sasuke. "…Sasuke…"

"What?"

"…I think you need to read this." Naruto handed him the card and Sasuke took it quietly, turning it and noting writing that he immediately found familiar…Yet he had never known the sender.

_Kyuubi…Or maybe I should call you Naruto. _

_We're terribly sorry to inconvenience you with destroying a sacred monument to the Bijuu Gang, but how else were we going to get your attention? You would've ignored anything else we threw at you, saying that your members could take whatever beating we threw their way…So we decided to hit close to home. I hope you're paying attention now? _

_As you probably well know, we are planning to start a Revolution. The first in ten years. In the first one, ANBU was included, and so it was much shorter. But this time there will only be two gangs, and one prize; Bijuu and Akatsuki shall fight, and the prize shall not be territory, as you've probably been told, but information. And quite possibly finally killing you._

_We wish you dead for the best of reasons, for the monstrosity inside of you is killing you…As Shukaku is killing Gaara, and those Sharingan will one day kill Sasuke. Sasuke, of course, probably already knows all of this. He is a smart boy; he's probably been hacking into his brother's own computer. Once we take over the city, we will learn everything we can to save those that are dying…But we regret to inform you that you three, as well as any other member that holds special abilities, are doomed to die. The sciences of the early ROOT have failed you; but we will succeed in where they failed. _

_We wish you to cooperate with us, and instead of fighting, give up now. For it'll be much easier for you to give up now instead of sending your gang to their suicides. Such young children in Bijuu; I hear that you even have a 12 year old joining! But that is of no importance…_

_We advise you give up, Naruto Uzumaki of Bijuu, because we care for your health. This Revolution…Will kill you. And none of us want that. We especially don't want to put Sasuke through that kind of…Mental torment again, of course. It would be cruel of us, since already he's lost his older brother. Why make him loose his lover as well? Especially to gangs. Spend your time with Sasuke instead…And die quietly. _

_If you do not take our advice…Then we will be forced to kill you…Understand that, dear boy. _

_Pein. _

"…He gave his name."

"His alias." Naruto muttered, looking at him quietly. "But do you recognize that writing?"

"…Aniki got letters from someone with similar writing. I've never read those letters before, though."

"Read them. See if you can find a common address…We'll need to show this to Shikamaru and Kakashi as well; Kakashi might know someone with this writing, and Shikamaru probably has some sort of high tech equipment at home where he can find the writer in a few hours." Sasuke nodded, before looking at Naruto quietly. "What…?"

"It says you're going to die." Sasuke said softly. "…It says I'll die."

"Neither of us is going to die." Naruto promised softly, placing his hand on his cheek and smiling quietly. "They're trying to scare us, that's all. We're completely safe."

"Are you sure?" Sasuke said, looking at him worriedly. Naruto nodded, and the Uchiha sighed, feeling foolish. He then felt arms wrap around him, and leaned into Naruto's hold. "Nothing's going to harm us, Sasuke…" Naruto murmured softly. "I promise."

"Don't promise something you can't keep." Sasuke murmured, sighing quietly. Naruto frowned, closing is eyes and sighing. "It'd be foolish to promise something like that."

"Of course…" Naruto sighed softly, shaking his head and closing his eyes, ready to go back to sleep. He then felt a small shake on his shoulder, and opened his eyes to look up at Sasuke curiously as he stared at him for a moment, looking almost uncomfortable. "What…?"

"…When this is all over…" Sasuke murmured softly, looking at Naruto's chest. Naruto waited for him to continue. "…Would you come live with me?"

"Sasuke?"

"I'm tired of living alone in the memory of Aniki…He suffocates me, and it's driving me insane. I need a new presence…Someone new to take up the space…" He murmured softly, closing his eyes and breathing shakily. "…I want it to be you."

"Shouldn't you wait for someone you love to live with you?"

"I have." Sasuke said softly. "And I found him." Naruto's eyes widened, before he smiled softly, running fingers through his hair quietly.

"…I'll move in." Naruto said softly. "…That, I can promise."

* * *

Naruto had shown the note to Kakashi and Shikamaru in the morning, explaining in quiet voices what had happened while Sasuke was sleeping. Meanwhile, Sasuke was getting ready to leave with Neji and Sakura, both on edge from the events that had happened last night. Sasuke walked over to Naruto's group to say goodbye, patting his shoulder and the blonde turned, smiling lightly and kissing him briefly, Sasuke kissing back before the two pulled away and the raven waved to Kakashi and the Nara, walking back to his group.

They walked down the early streets quietly, listening for anything out of place and keeping watch for any out of ordinary shadows. Sasuke stopped near his house at one point, looking around, and the other two stopped as well, watching as the Uchiha summoned his sharingan and looked around quietly. "Come out and show yourself!"

A footstep appeared behind them and the three whipped around to see Kabuto Yakushi of all people standing there, smiling at them nervously and giving them a quick bow. "Kabuto." Sasuke muttered darkly, eyes narrowed dangerously. "What the fuck are you doing following us?"

"Just thought I'd see how my father's pet project was doing." He said, looking at him quietly. "You seem to be coming along fine." Neji and Sakura looked at Sasuke in confusion, the Uchiha glaring daggers at the man in front of him. "Though you're much more stable now. Something happen to calm your temper?"

"Shut the hell up Yakushi and get out of my face."

"Not until you do something for me."

"And what's that?"

"Kill me." Sasuke's eyes widened and he took a step back, watching as Kabuto looked at him with a frightful, pleading expression. "I want my madness to end, Sasuke. Please."

"…I'm not killing you." He said softly, looking at him with a shaky expression. "I refuse to be the cause of another death, no matter how much you deserve it. You're pathetic, Kabuto; coming up to me and thinking I'll kill you because you asked. Two months ago, maybe I would've. But I refuse to now. I am not the same Sasuke Uchiha; I am different now. I will not kill people for the sake of killing them. I am not Orochimaru's play thing. So get the fuck out of my face and kill yourself." He sneered. "You're that much of a coward to end your own life, aren't you?"

"I'm terrified of the thought of dying." Kabuto said truthfully, looking at him. "I wouldn't be able to kill myself."

"Then find someone else. I'm not killing you."

"Gaara said my blood belonged to you. That it was your right."

"…I am not God." Sasuke muttered quietly. "And I will not take your worthless life. Now get out of my face. You don't matter anymore; you're life is moot to me. You're a bug, and you can go crawl in the dark for all I care, go missing…Never be heard of again. But you're not needed. No one needs you now…You're unimportant." He deactivated sharingan, wincing at a soft headache that had formed. "Leave me."

He then turned, walking away without looking back, Sakura and Neji following behind in confusion. Kabuto stared at his retreating back, wrapping his arms around his torso and breathing heavily.

"I'm not…Useless." He whispered quietly. "I'm not…I'm anything but useless!" His eyes narrowed on Sasuke, though he could no longer see him. "I'll…I'll show him…That I'm still needed. He'll regret he said any of that…He will…"

* * *

Kakashi was staring at the note with wide eyes, his mouth dropped open as Shikamaru and Naruto were talking quietly. The blonde finally seemed to note Kakashi's facial expression, and looked at him curiously, raising an eyebrow. "What's up, Kakashi?"

"…Are you sure Hidan said this was from their Leader?"

"Dead positive." Naruto said, looking at him in confusion. "Why?"

"…This is Minato's writing." Kakashi looked at Naruto quietly as he looked at him in confusion. "Minato Namikaze…You're father."

* * *

"Did he receive the message?" Leader said softly, looking at Hidan with bored blue eyes. Hidan nodded looking to the side. "What was it like, talking to him again?"

"…I miss him." Hidan said softly. Leader smiled pityingly, looking away. "I'm sorry sir, but I do."

"I know." Leader said softly, before looking at him. "You can leave." Hidan nodded quietly, turning quickly and walking out. Leader watched for a moment, before he sighed, running a hand down his face and looking out the window again; the picture of a young toddler and a redheaded woman on his desk smiling at the camera, a blonde man behind them grinning a cheesy grin. "…I miss him too."


	15. Great Expectations

A/N: Well, it sure has been a while hasn't it?

...  
You're all planning to kill me now, aren't you? But! If you do that, you won't get ANY updates! THEN WHAT WOULD YOU DO?

...  
Probably nothing.  
Anyhow, I hope you enjoy this, even though I'm sure you all hate me immensely right now!

Disclaimer: Naruto and Co. belong to Masashi Kishimoto.

* * *

"_Get away from me!" _

_Naruto shoved Hidan away from him, crawling back against the bed and staring at him with wide, terrified eyes. Hidan looked back at him, his eyes narrowing in anger. He watched as the older man stood up, placing a knee on the bed as if he were going to crawl across it.  
_

"_Naruto…" _

"_NO!" The blonde screamed, pushing himself back farther. He felt the edge of the bed, and knew that if he fell, he could crawl under the bed and make a break for the door. His eyes snapped open when he felt a hand on his shoulder, gaze landing on Hidan's face. The man he thought had cared for him made a strangled noise in the back of his throat, pushing himself away from Naruto as he stared in horror at him. _

"…_What the fuck are you?" he hissed then, scrambling to get away from Naruto as if he were a devil. "What the fucking hell are you!" _

_Instead of answering, Naruto scrambled off the bed and booked it for the door, running down the halls and out into the busy streets of Venice. Without looking back he ran through the crowds, loosing himself within them quickly and effectively loosing Hidan in case the blonde haired man who had betrayed him tried to follow. _

_He collapsed eventually in the middle of the street, crying and feeling like a broken toy, crushed and used for the enjoyment of a cruel owner. _

"_I don't love you…I don't love you…I don't love you…"

* * *

_Naruto's eyes opened slowly as his memory dream ended, looking at the roof blankly. He had decided that he would take a nap after talking with Kakashi and Shikamaru, feeling inexplicably tired after all of the events that had happened at New Year's. Sighing, he ran a hand through his hair and sat up, looking around the living room to see Kakashi listening to a music player and reading one of the many books they had lying around the house. Raising an eyebrow at the oblivious English teacher, he shook his head and got up from the couch, making his way to the kitchen for a glass of water as his throat felt papery dry.

Flicking on the light switch of the kitchen, he looked at the sink to see the dishes from the feast still sitting around in precarious piles. He also saw pop cans lying idly about, food half wrapped in Ceram wrap© on the table and counter, chip bags opened and left to grow stale. Overall, the entire kitchen was a mess.

He sighed, shaking his head and pushing his sleeves up to his elbows, determined to get his mind off of things for the moment and get some cleaning done. After all, he knew Kakashi would be too lazy to do any of this today, and Naruto couldn't stand the smell of food going bad in their house.

As he tackled the chip bags first, as they were the easier of things needed to be done, he thought back on his dream and of the last moments he had had with Hidan in Venice. He had seemed to terrifying one moment and then terrified the next moment, not knowing what to do with whatever it was he saw. Naruto had never known what it was that had scared Hidan away, giving him time to run, yet the more he thought about it the more clear it became.

'_Most likely he saw Kyuubi taking over or something, which caused him to feel terror at the unknown. After all, I was just a normal kid until that moment to him, so suddenly seeing red eyes and jagged lines on my face must've been a shock.'_ He sighed, shaking his head and shoving all the chips into a cupboard under the sink where they put chips and crackers. He then finished wrapping up food and put it into the fridge and freezer respectively, moving towards the empty pop cans, tossing them into the recycle while dumping out empty, flat cans into the sink and washing them out so they weren't so sticky.

'_Is that why he said what he did last night? Does he think there's something wrong with having Kyuubi…? Is there something about all of this that I don't know?'

* * *

_"Leader, there is someone here who would like to talk about something with you."

The blonde haired man looked over from the window to Hidan standing in his doorway, leaning against the doorframe with his arms crossed and an indifferent look to his face. He had been this way since last night when he had delivered the note to Naruto after the explosion of the monument. Hidan had said he missed Naruto, Leader was sure this was true, yet at the same time he didn't believe that was everything. Hidan always seemed off when it came to Naruto, as if there was something about the young gang leader that unnerved him. This made Leader curious, as not many things could unnerve Hidan.

"Who is this person?"

"Someone calling himself Kabuto Yakushi; wasn't that the adopted son of Orochimaru?" Hidan asked, lifting an eyebrow. Leader shrugged indifferently, turning away from him and leaving his chair as he went to his closet. He dug through it for a moment, pulling out a short orange-red wig and pulling it on over his blonde hair. Hidan continued to watch as his leader grabbed a smaller box from within his closet, putting on magnetic piercings in his nose and bottom lip. He finished off the change in appearance with orange contacts, carefully putting each on the respective eye. Once satisfied with how he looked, he grabbed the Akatsuki cloak and pulled it on over his formal wear, zipping it up until the collar covered his chin effectively.

"Alright, send him in," he spoke, his voice sounding menacing in this new look. Hidan nodded once, leaving Leader to sit back down at his desk, putting away the few pictures he had on his desk and neatening the stacks of paper he had resting on the tabletop. He looked up when there was a knock on his door, narrowing his eyes to see the silver haired adoptive son of Orochimaru Goizamu, one of the many (now dead) thorns in his side.

"Kabuto Yakushi," he greeted softly then, nodding towards the chair in front of his desk as invitation to sit. Kabuto said quickly, looking around the office in nerves and interest. "What is it you wished to speak of with me, the leader of a gang that had nothing to do with Oto?"

"I wish to join Akatsuki," Kabuto said, looking at him with his wide dark eyes, round glasses flashing briefly in the light, blocking view of his expression. "I want to prove to Sasuke Uchiha that I am not useless like he says I am. I want to crush him like he has crushed so many others in his little life. I know I can do that within Akatsuki." He paused, looking down at his hands which were clasped together to keep them from shaking; whether they were shaking from excitement, nerves, or something else entirely, Leader wasn't sure he knew or wanted to know. "You're trying to destroy him anyway, right? I can help you. I know all about him. He did used to be a favourite of my father's, you know. And I hold all of his personal medical history. I can be of assistance."

Leader sat back, leaning his jaw on his fist in contemplation before closing his eyes. He listened as Kabuto fidgeted in his seat, and he wondered what kind of man this person was. He seemed to be slightly unhinged, and definitely out for revenge of some sort. He didn't know if he wanted this kind of man in his gang when things were already going so well. Yet, he did hold valuable information on Sasuke Uchiha, and he could quite possibly be of some help in getting rid of the dark boy.

Opening his eyes, he looked at Kabuto to see him watching him apprehensively before he nodded once, pushing himself up from the chair and walking to the other closet he held in his office that held the spare uniforms for members of Akatsuki.

"I welcome you to the ranks of Akatsuki, Kabuto Yakushi, now known as Angel of Mercy." He turned, holding out the robe for Kabuto to take. The silver haired man scrambled up to his feet and walked quickly over to retrieve the garb. Leader grabbed his wrist then, narrowing his eyes carefully to make sure Kabuto was watching him and paying attention.

"I expect great things from you. Do _not_ fail me."

* * *

Sasuke sat, staring at Itachi's computer screen yet not seeing it. In his mind he couldn't help but see Kabuto standing before him, asking him to kill him, saying that his blood was his to shed. Rubbing his face with the heels of his palms, he sighed and went back to reading the documents on ROOT's resting his brother had made, determined to memorize it soon before he destroyed it and therefore took it right out of Akatsuki's hands.

Sighing, he looked at the next subtopic to see that it was 'Shukaku'. He frowned at that, recognizing it as the demon that resided within Gaara's mind, the one that had caused him to go insane and kill people because he admired Chidori and thought it was all he was good for. Sasuke had always thought that Shukaku was just a figment of Gaara's imagination, a sort of second personality as Chidori was to him. So what would it be doing in his Aniki's report on ROOT human testing?

Moving to the section that Itachi had written on it, he sat back and began to read.

_A different experiment that the Professor and Yondaime, Sarutobi and Minato respectively, had decided to try was enhancing a human's physical strength, speed and their capacity to take things in, analyse it, and use the situation then to their advantage. The first of these tests, out of nine, was the Shukaku. _

_Based off of the legend of the one tailed demon of sand, the Shukaku was a being created by Yondaime that was made to mainly enhance physical strength and the mental capacity a person had. The person's movement would not be improved upon, however their ability to think of appropriate tactics to situation would drastically improve, as would their physical strength and stamina. _

_The test subject for this experiment was a fetus in the third trimester, a few weeks from birth. The woman, Amarante Sabaku, came in with her husband willingly for this experiment, hoping to help their unborn child. The unborn child was promised to be born defected, most likely either paralyzed or mentally slow, and the parents thought that with the addition of the Shukaku that they'd be able to save their child. _

_During the pregnancy, however, things went wrong and Amarante went into early labour. Due to excess blood and the difficulty of the birth itself, Amarante died as a result of the birth of her son, Gaara Sabaku. Yet the boy showed no signs of Shukaku within his system until later on in his life, when the police found his father dead and his son sitting in the corner, mumbling to himself. _

_As a result, the presence of the Shukaku experiment seemed to have made a sort of 'second personality' within Gaara's mind, with the possible outcomes of violence and no sense of empathy for the wrongs that he could commit._

Sasuke read over the last line a few more times before he sighed and rubbed his eyes, closing the file for now and shutting down the computer. He left Itachi's room then, closing the door and looking into the living room to see the twins and Tayuya watching television, oddly quiet since they had gotten home a little later than he himself.

"…Do any of you want to go out for a bit? I need to get groceries, and then we could go to the park. It'd be good to get out of the apartment for a little bit, right?"

Glancing over at him, Sakon, Ukon and Tayuya all nodded, getting up to follow him to the small front foyer and put on their shoes.

* * *

Glancing up from his book, Kakashi noticed that Naruto was no longer sleeping on the couch quietly. Raising an eyebrow, he got up from his seat, put aside his book and removed his headphones, hearing immediately sound from the kitchen.

He walked into the kitchen to see Naruto up to his elbows in dish soap, washing the dishes from last night (and probably some from the past couple of days; Kakashi had been feeling particularly lazy lately because of Naruto's antisocial behaviour and the utter lack of visitors since school ended for break). Leaning against the doorframe, he smirked as he watched Naruto hum slightly off-key, scrubbing a platter and not paying attention to anything else in the world.

The sight of Naruto so content had been rare the past few weeks, months, maybe even years. Naruto had changed quite vividly since Venice, no longer the happy-go-lucky innocent young boy without a care in the world. He had turned quiet, introverted, and overall unapproachable until the night he had told Rin, Obito and Kakashi what had happened the day that a police officer had brought him home to them, looking haggard and with his face stained with tear streaks.

Kakashi had been ready to kill him, feeling that he had failed in protecting Naruto when it truly mattered so obliterating the thing that had almost destroyed him seemed logical. Obito had been all for this plan until Rin had told both of them that they would simply leave that night instead of the next day. After they had packed and gotten onto the plane for America, they dropped the subject, but Naruto hadn't been the same since that conversation.

It was only a little while after that that Obito died, Rin was murdered, and Naruto took over as head of the Bijuu gang. Kakashi didn't think he had ever properly recovered from the trauma of that event.

So, to see the blonde acting this content in the house, simply washing the dishes and not seeming so bothered by everything happening, it was good to see.

"How long are you going to watch me do the dishes and not help, Kakashi?" Naruto called back, grinning as he heard Kakashi give a small laugh at being caught. He heard his guardian walk over, picking up a drying cloth and picking up the dishes in the drying rack silently. "How was the book?"

"Long and dull."

"Ah, a school book, then," Naruto said wisely, nodding. Kakashi smirked, shaking his head and putting aside the dried dishes to later put into their proper places.

"And how was your nap?" Kakashi asked him after a lull in conversation, looking over curiously with blue and red eyes. Naruto shrugged, handing him a platter to dry.

"Long and dull."

"Ah, a school dream, then." Naruto laughed again, shaking his head and grinning.

* * *

Sitting on Sakura's bed, Neji fell back onto the mattress with an undignified _'flump'_, closing his eyes and sighing tiredly. The pinkette sat next to him, smoothing the wrinkles from his forehead and trying to relax him somehow. "You're supposed to set up a meeting between the Akatsuki leader and Kakashi, right?" she asked then, looking at him with sympathetic green eyes. He nodded once, opening pale silver eyes and staring at the roof blandly, seeing it but not really seeing it at all.

"I am," he said after a moment, lifting a hand and catching hers on his forehead, linking their fingers together. "I'll do that in a minute. Right now I just want to collect my thoughts and not think so much on all the bad things piling on top of us right now."

"Is there really so much?" Sakura asked softly, looking sad at the thought. He nodded, closing his eyes again and squeezing her hand. "You want to talk about it?"

"I can't really talk about it," he mumbled quietly, frowning. "I don't want to worry you with unnecessary worries."

"They can't be unnecessary if they're stressing you out this much. You're usually much more easy-going," she said with a smile. Neji snorted, smirking a bit.

"I know more than a handful of people who would vehemently disagree with that statement, Sakura."

"Oh, I'm sure you do. I do, too. But they don't know you as well as I do." She bent down and kissed his nose then, grinning as he opened his eyes to look at her with a cross look.

"No, they don't. Meaning you should know perfectly well I hate it when you kiss my nose."

Sakura simply grinned in response.

* * *

Before they left for the park after returning to the apartment from shopping, Sasuke had gone through the papers on Itachi's desk, finding all of the letters that had the same writing as the note that Naruto had received the night of New Years. Patting them into a neat little pile, he folded them into small enough squares until they fit into his back pocket. Once he had those, he left the apartment and met up with the twins and Tayuya in the front foyer, leading them to a park that was not too far from the building. Sakon and Ukon immediately broke off from the group to go to the jungle climber, Tayuya grinning as she ran off for the swings to see if she could finally flip over the bar like she had wanted to do when she was small.

Smiling a little bit, though with hints of stress still in his face, Sasuke followed Tayuya to the swings, sitting on the one next to her.

"That's no way to swing, Sasuke! You have to pump your legs and get some real air! Come on, you can do it! Remember when we used to have contests to see who could jump the farthest?" Tayuya said gleefully, leaning back as she went swinging forward, seeing the world from upside down. Sasuke grinned and shook his head at her antics, lazily pushing himself back and forth, not really trying to get any air. Tayuya simply stuck her tongue out in response, continuing with her swinging and not paying him any attention.

Once he was sure Tayuya wasn't going to ask what he was reading, Sasuke brought out all the letters Itachi had received during his short life back in the city. He read each one, seeing the familiar pen strokes; the way he crossed his T's, dotted his I's and ended his G's, Y's, P's and Z's. It was a flowing sort of script, with hints of chicken scratch and block print. A weird sort of handwriting, and so easy to remember.

Each letter had some sort of order or mission detailed into it with all the points that needed to be done and the situation each was placed in. He saw that Itachi had been assigned to do spy work, hack into numerable hard-to-crack databases and had even been assigned to 'take care' of some big business men via blackmail material, making them forget everything with the mangekyou sharingan or even kill them. Sasuke frowned at the thought of his Aniki taking anyone's life, yet he knew that it was completely possible. Itachi had been in another, uniformed gang before Akatsuki, ANBU, and he didn't know if ANBU members had killed anyone or not while they existed.

Sighing, he put the letters away, noting that each other the addresses were different and from out of town. This Leader was smart; he knew not to use a common address, else it would be all too easy to track him. So this lead was completely off, and they would have to figure out a different way to find out who Leader, or Pein as he called himself, was.

After pushing these thoughts to the side, he started to fully swing, catching up easily to Tayuya and grinning at her as she looked at him curiously. "You want to see who can jump the farthest?"

Tayuya laughed out loud, reaching out and taking Sasuke's hand, squeezing it before she let go and started to pump her legs. "You're on, emo boy!"

* * *

"This is Byakugen, Bijuu's contactor. Am I speaking to Akatsuki's contactor?"

Neji listened as the person on the other line confirmed that they were indeed the contactor, and requested to know what Bijuu wanted from Akatsuki. Neji sighed, shifting in his seat on Sakura's bed, looking down to see the pinkette sleeping peacefully on his lap. He then turned his attention back to the matter at hand.

"Raikiri, an Honoured Member of Bijuu, would like to arrange a meeting with Leader of Akatsuki to discuss the events of New Years day later on within the week. If this would be at all possible, please contact me again through this number." He listened as the contactor confirmed that they would do that, nodding though he knew they couldn't see him. "Alright, thank you." He flipped the phone closed then, sighing and shaking his head as he dropped it on the mattress, tangling his fingers through Sakura's short pink locks silently, taking in the warm comfort of her presence.

"Winter just doesn't seem to be this gang's season…"

* * *

Sasuke, Tayuya and the twins returned to the apartment later on closer to dinner, Tayuya claiming that she would make dinner that night to give Sasuke a break from cooking all of the time. Sasuke accepted this, following Sakon and Ukon to the couch to watch some television, listening to the news with only half of his attention. The other half was on what he had learned about Gaara and Shukaku, wondering if Gaara knew about any of this. He felt that he probably didn't, as he believed that Shukaku was a real demon within him.

He wasn't sure if, like he had with Neji, he should tell the redhead what he had learned within Itachi's reports. He wanted Gaara to know that Shukaku wasn't an actual demon but something that scientists had given him. He also wanted him to know he wasn't at fault for his mother's death; yet at the same time, he didn't want Gaara thinking that his mother had hated him even before he was born and injected him with Shukaku because she wanted him to suffer. And for some reason, he felt that Gaara would think exactly that.

He frowned, briefly wondering why Hinata and Neji seemed to calm Gaara down when he was close to breaking, as he hadn't read anything about the Byakugen calming the Shukaku.

'_I probably need to read a bit more before I understand everything,'_ he thought, rubbing the corner of his eye as he felt a twitch developing there. _'I don't think I should tell him everything until I understand everything.'_

With that decision in mind, he got up from the couch to help Tayuya with dinner, setting the table for her as she finished up the spaghetti she had decided to make.

* * *

"Gaara-kun, th-thank you for walking me to my r-room and staying with me for a little bit. It truly does mean a l-lot to me."

Gaara nodded, kneeling beside Hinata as a servant helped her sit on her futon bed, pulling the covers over her once she was settled. She smiled at him, pushing back her dark hair that had grown out in her stay at the hospital. It was now down to her shoulders, straight and thick. Gaara pushed aside a strand that had fallen into her face, watching as she blushed a light pink at the contact.

"I wanted to," he replied after a moment, sitting back and folding his hands on his knees. "How are you feeling, Hinata?"

"I've felt much worse before." Gaara nodded again and Hinata sighed, smiling as she leaned her head back against her pillows. "Why…wh-why did you want to stay, Gaara-kun?"

"…" Gaara looked over at her, before turning to look at his knees, shrugging his shoulders slightly. "…I feel at peace when I'm around you."

Hinata's pale eyes widened, before she smiled brightly and nodded, closing her eyes happily.

"I-I see…"


	16. Have an Announcement

STORIES DEAD


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